


A Delicate Cure

by scrumptiousinternetllama



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-14
Updated: 2017-02-22
Packaged: 2018-07-24 00:34:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 44
Words: 56,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7486311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scrumptiousinternetllama/pseuds/scrumptiousinternetllama
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Luna Lovegood fails to brew a simple boils curing potion, Severus decides it's time she got a tutor. Draco Malfoy begrudgingly agrees.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**A Delicate Cure**

**Desc: When Luna Lovegood fails to brew a simple boils curing potion, Severus decides it's time she got a tutor. Draco Malfoy begrudgingly agrees.**

**(Luna L. Draco M.)**

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**This is my second fic and I'm excited to get things underway! This is a Draco/Luna fic but I'm starting off with Severus' point of view. Whenever there's a grey line that means I'm switching the point of view.**

**I'm placing Luna and Ginny in the same year as Draco.**

**For my cover image I typed in "Luna Lovegood", "Draco Malfoy" and "Hogwarts corridor" on google images. I edited the three images together with a combination of PowerPoint, Paint and the photo editor on this website. The finished product is my own.**

**Finally, I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 1 

Severus watched the classroom like a hawk. He knew which students he needed to keep an eye on. Most, (if not all), were incompetent. However there was a select few that had somehow managed to surpass the point of simple incompetence. They were destructive. The students he had his eye on were:

Neville Longbottom

Luna Lovegood

Harry Potter

Ronald Weasley

Neville Longbottom was destructive when around a cauldron. He didn't know why Minerva permitted him to stay in practical lessons when he was a danger to all those around him.

Luna Lovegood was almost as bad as Longbottom. Her focus strayed after every five seconds, making potions, (an incredibly delicate art), an almost impossible task for her.

Harry Potter seemed to wreak havoc wherever he went, and Severus wasn't about to take the risk of leaving him unsupervised around a cauldron.

Ronald Weasley simply didn't have any skill with potions, 3/5 times he would fail and that was _not_ good enough. He was also Harry Potter's best friend. So when disaster befell Harry, it also fell on Ronald.

He stopped his train of thought and turned to write the next instructions on the blackboard.

_Add four horned slugs into your cauldron-_

"Luna! Luna turn it off!" Came a yell from behind him. Hermione Granger. He turned just in time to see a melting cauldron and held back a curse as the repugnant smell hit him. With a quick flick of his wand the heat was taken off.

"Move out of the way." He snarled as he levitated the cauldron, (well, whatever was left of it), through the classroom to the sink. "Detention Lovegood!" The punishment didn't seem to register with the young girl but he didn't care. One of her peers would inform her.

* * *

Draco walked to the great hall by himself, his friends being detained by Snape. He thought back to the lesson. It had been a particularly disastrous one and all they had been doing was going over first year potions.

First Crabbe sneezed all over his ingredients and then Goyle had attempted to clean them with a _scouring_ charm. The horned slug bits all over the table were proof enough that it hadn't worked. The last disaster had been when the Lovegood girl had melted her cauldron. Honestly it was third year. How could they _not_ have grasped first year potions?! Potions was such a simple subject. Yes it was an art but it came easily enough to _him_.

He took his seat next to Pansy and tried not to cringe as she practically drooled at him. The girl was incredibly overbearing but his father had told him that the Parkinson's were a well-respected pure blood family. It wouldn't do to anger them by rejecting their daughter's request. Draco had thought that since she was a pure-blood and came from such a respected family she would be meek. Timid. He couldn't have been more wrong. All the girl wanted to do was snog him. But he was more than happy to oblige. Pansy wasn't an unattractive girl. But… Draco wished she wouldn't _giggle_ so much. And that she wouldn't cling to his arm so desperately. She would probably be a good friend. But a good girlfriend she was not. His thoughts were interrupted by Parkinson herself.

"Draaaco?" She whispered with a giggle.

"What?" He asked, desperately trying not to make a face.

"I just wanted to know if after lunch we could maybe…" She trailed off at the end of the sentence, her eyebrows raised. For the past couple of weeks Pansy had been trying to take things further than their regular snogging and investigative groping. If he was honest with himself he wanted to do it. But he knew that his father as well as Pansy's would have his head on a platter if he did anything of the sort. If he was even more honest with himself, he knew that he could get away with it. His father wouldn't hear a thing about it if he was smart enough. But digging down _even deeper_ he knew that he didn't want to do anything of the sort _with Pansy_.

As he opened his mouth to make an excuse Crabbe appeared beside him, "Uh, Draco?" He asked.

"What?"

"Professor Snape is asking for you in the dungeons." Draco could have hugged his friend he was so relieved. But instead he put on a mask of indifference and said.

"Sorry Pansy, I'll talk to you later. Crabbe," he nodded at his friend as he left.

* * *

Luna was confused as to why Professor Snape had called her to his office. Her mind cleared as she sat waiting for the professor to speak. Her detention. She had just about to have what looked like a delicious chicken pie when Gregory Goyle had told her that she was wanted in the dungeons. The interruption must have been for a reason though, she was sure she had heard some suspicious buzzing from her plate of food.

"Sir you called for me?" Came a voice from the doorway. Draco Malfoy. She had seen him around the school. In fact she had caught him taking her shoes more than once. What he was taking them for, she had no idea. He was rather strange.

* * *

Draco took a seat as far away from the Lovegood girl as he possibly could without irritating his godfather.

"Indeed I did Draco." The potions master said. "Miss Lovegood here had an incident with her potion today. As you know it was a first year potion and I have noticed that this has been a frequent occurrence over the past few years."

Draco frowned wondering what this had to do with him.

"I can see that you are wondering where you come in. I want you to tutor Miss Lovegood until she can get a few basic potions right, beginning with the boils curing potion."

Draco scowled; he did not want to have to spend any of his free time with _Loony_ Lovegood. "But sir can't you do it?"

He immediately realised this was the wrong thing to say, "Mr Malfoy." Professor Snape said slowly. Dangerously. "Have you forgotten that I am teaching potions all day? Do you realise what an opportunity this is? A chance to develop your skill in the subject."

"Sorry sir." He muttered.

"I should hope you are. You may start today or tomorrow but no later than that." He said. Draco recognised this as a dismissal and stood up to leave, not bothering to wait for Lovegood. He was going to eat his lunch before working on anything.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**My updates will probably not be that regular; just thought I should let you know. If I do establish a schedule then I'll be sure to put it in an AN or on my profile. :) Enjoy!**

Chapter 2

Draco hadn't thought the idea of tutoring _Loony_ would be remotely beneficial for him. But his mind was instantly changed as he sat back at the Slytherin table.

"What did Professor Snape want?" Pansy inquired as soon as he had sat down.

"I just have to be a tutor."

"For who?" She asked with narrow eyes. When she saw he wasn't about to answer with a mouthful of potatoes, she said, "It doesn't matter anyway. So long as it won't interrupt us tonigh-"

"Actually," He said, leaning away from the hand that was undoubtedly there to brush a strand of hair away from his face, "The first session is right after dinner." He gave his godfather a mental thank you and hurried to speak before Pansy could reply. "In fact, it's every night until I cover all the potions I need to cover."

"Not even one night off?" She asked with an overdramatic pout.

"Not even one night." He said. When she frowned suspiciously he quickly added, "Well I could but I would rather get it all done so I have more time to spend with you after it's all done." He inwardly cringed at the quickly formed lie but Pansy seemed satisfied with his answer.

"You're so sweet." She giggled. _Just grin and bear through it Draco. You'll be brewing soon._ He thought to himself. It was an attempt to calm himself down but the other part of his brain came up with a quick response. _With Loony._

* * *

Luna went back to the Ravenclaw table to find that her chicken pie was still hot. The strange buzzing she had heard before had ceased, or was it simply the noise in the great hall?

"Where did you go?" Asked Cho Chang from beside her.

"Oh, Professor Snape told me that I'd be having a tutor to help me improve in potions." Luna poked at her pie and stuck her ear close to her plate, managing to grab her hair just in time. No buzzing… That was strange.

"What are you doing?" Her friend asked confused.

"I was sure I heard some buzzing coming from my plate." She hummed thoughtfully, "Perhaps it was just-" But whatever Luna was going to say was cut off by a haughty voice.

"We need to practice." Said Draco, impatiently tapping his foot. When she made no effort to move he huffed and said, " _Now._ I'll be outside, hurry."

Cho made a face beside her, "That was rather rude."

"Was it?" Luna asked surprised, "Well, I've got to go. Let me know if you hear any buzzing. It sounds like this. _Buzzzz zzz zzzz z zzz-"_

"Luna, don't you need to go?" Cho said with a snort, "I'll let you know if I hear anything."

* * *

Draco had made it down to the dungeons without hearing a peep from Lovegood. For that he was grateful. He heard a soft voice behind him as he was setting up his station. S _o much for the silence,_ he thought to himself sarcastically. "Are you allowed to do this unsupervised?"

He rolled his eyes as he answered, "Obviously, I was told to tutor you and practice potions. Professor Snape isn't going to supervise if he isn't going to teach." He made sure the 'duh' was clear in his voice but it didn't seem to affect her in the slightest. How annoying.

Ten minutes later and they had gotten their ingredients ready. Lovegood's attention had drifted only once so far. He hoped it would stay that way. He wrote the instructions on the blackboard and they began.

Luna crushed the snake fangs in the mortar and he could hear her muttering to herself. It sounded like she was saying sorry. What on earth was she saying sorry for? He didn't think he wanted to know actually. Shaking his head he got on with adding four measures of the fine powder she had made to the cauldron.

They had just finished the first part of the potion when Luna got up and made to leave. "What are you doing?" He asked confused.

"I have at least half an hour until I need to check on the potion." She said, looking as confused as he felt.

"No you don't." He said. No wonder she was so inept at the subject. "You can't just leave the potion, the temperature might need adjusting. Rule number one, you _never_ leave a cauldron unsupervised. How could you not know that? You need to stay here and keep an eye on it; I'm not doing your work for you." She cocked her head to the side and looked at him inquisitively. It was quite creepy.

"Okay." _That was it? That was her answer?_ He had expected _some_ resistance. He watched as she sat by and listened to the calming sounds of the cauldron bubbling. Now they would wait.

* * *

The sound of the seconds ticking by was oddly soothing but it was beginning to get boring. She had looked around the room hoping to find something of interest but there was nothing. The dungeons were kept pristinely and not one living thing, (other than her and Draco), could be seen. She looked up at Draco to see him looking deep in thought. What was he thinking? Well she wouldn't be able to find out without asking, "What are you thinking?" She called across the room. Draco jumped as if she had poured ice water over him.

"What's it to you?" He asked. His brows were furrowed and his lips were thinned. He looked rather comical to Luna. At that moment the potion let out a burping sound and Luna couldn't contain a laugh.

* * *

Draco noticed her laugh immediately. She didn't giggle, she _laughed_. He couldn't help the amused smile that crept onto his face but it left as quickly as it had come when she tilted her head and stared at him with her unnerving eyes again. " _What?_ " He asked again.

"I'm bored." Luna answered simply as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked beginning to lose patience.

"Entertain me." She said with a smile. Draco was surprised, he had never met anyone so upfront, (besides his godfather).But he wasn't surprised enough to act like her monkey.

"I'm not your house elf." He said with a disdainful look.

"I never said you were."

Draco and Luna were now stood over the cauldron, adding the remaining ingredients. After he had added in the porcupine quills he instructed Luna to stir. She had been on her second stir when the liquid sloshed over the side of the cauldron.

" _Focus._ " He said, taking the spoon from her loose grip. "When you're making a potion you have to focus and be delicate."

Luna looked at him with confused eyes, "Why delicate?"

He squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose. " _Because,"_ He said through gritted teeth, "It has an effect on the potion."

"How?" More questions… He guessed that it was to be expected as she was a Ravenclaw.

Keeping his voice steady he said, "This potion is here to cure you, right?" The blonde nodded, focused entirely on him. It was disconcerting to see her normally glazed over eyes so alert. "If you were ill and someone 'manhandled' you, it wouldn't make you feel better, would it?" She shook her head. "So why would the cure be 'manhandled'?" The explanation wasn't perfect, he knew. But it seemed to click with Luna so he left it at that. He instructed her to wave her wand and they finished the potion.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**A big thank you to Mayapain for leaving lovely comments on the last chapters; I'm so glad you like the story :)**

**I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

Chapter 3

The first night of tutoring had exhausted Draco. He wasn't used to working after school time apart from homework. And usually, that was done for him. He struggled to keep his eyes open and tried to take in what Professor Flitwick was saying. Something about a summoning…

* * *

Luna had stayed up quite late trying to remember the instructions to the boils curing potion but must have fallen asleep at one point. Cho had woken her up though.

"Did you hear anymore buzzing?" Had been Luna's immediate question.

But to her dismay, Cho's answer had been a, "No."

Now they, (as well as Ginny) were sat in charms, and Luna was struggling to keep her focus. Charms was a lovely lesson and it usually held her interest. Professor Flitwick was also her head of house and she knew that he was a lovely, entertaining man. However today the combination of the Wrackspurts around Draco Malfoy's head and her own fatigue weren't permitting her to concentrate.

"Mr Malfoy!" Professor Flitwick's high voice carried across the room, jolting a sleeping Draco awake. A ripple of laughter went through the classroom.

"You two must have been up late together last night!" Ginny said in a joking whisper. Well Luna was sure it was _intended_ to be a whisper but the classroom had gone silent after a stern look from Professor Flitwick so the sound carried across the room. A nervous titter came up from the seats around them. Flitwick didn't bother trying to hush them and decided to carry on with the lesson. However Luna couldn't help but notice that what seemed like a staring contest was going on between Pansy and Ginny. When Pansy's icy glare turned to her, Luna frowned in confusion. However Pansy seemed to get offended by that.

* * *

"Did you see that?!" Pansy hissed.

"See what?" Draco asked rolling his eyes. He didn't have to worry about her seeing him as her gaze was focused on Luna.

"She _frowned_ at me! She threw me a dirty look!" Draco couldn't stop the laughter from escaping his lips. _She frowned at her?! Really? That's what got her so upset?_ Pansy whipped her head around so quickly it was a blur. Her malevolent glare was now on him and his laughter ceased immediately. He noticed everyone staring at them. Even Lovegood. This was _her_ fault.

"Pansy-" He murmured from the corner of his mouth, "Ever-"

"You think this is funny?!" She shouted, interrupting him. The entire class flinched at her roar. "What _were_ you doing with _her_?" She pointed at Lovegood with a disgusted look. "Come on, I want to know!"

"It was nothing like that." Draco said calmly. His patience was wearing incredibly thin and he didn't think he could stay calm if Pansy kept carrying on.

"Don't lie to me." She hissed, "What was _ginger_ over there talking about?"

"Oi!" Came Ginny's indignant shout from across the room.

"It was a joke." He said one eyebrow raised.

"I don't think I believe you!" She said turning away from him with her nose in the air.

"Fine then! Don't!"

"You know what?! We're done!" She yelled as she turned back to face him.

"Does it look like I care?" He sneered, (a trait he had picked up from his godfather). That scathing comment seemed to be the last straw for Pansy as she stood up and moved to the other side of the room with her friends. Draco's stomach sank as he realised what he'd done. His father would _not_ be happy. But the feeling of a weight being lifted from his shoulders, the freedom of not having Pansy breathing down his neck washed away his worries. _She_ had broken up with _him_. This wasn't his fault.

* * *

At lunch Luna checked if there was any buzzing from her plate. She trusted Cho but anyone could mishear. Or not hear. After she had eaten she would make her way down to the quidditch pitch. The great hall was buzzing with excitement for the Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff match and Luna was no exception.

The Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were in seats directly facing each other and the Ravenclaws and Slytherins were opposite each other too. Of course they were slightly mixed but most people tended to stick with their own houses. Luna and Cho had joined the Gryffindors to watch Ginny and Harry play. The crowd murmured excitedly as the balls were released and let out a loud cheer when the whistle blew.

* * *

Draco made his way down to the great hall for lunch. He sat down in his usual seat but there was a freedom about it. No clingy Pansy grabbing at his arm or trying to feed him. Crabbe was already sat down and Goyle arrived shortly after Draco. He felt rather grateful to the Lovegood girl. She was the one that had ensured this freedom. But Draco wasn't about to give her the wrong message. First his girlfriend breaks up with him because of her and then he starts being nice to her? Nuh uh, that would _definitely_ give the wrong message. As Dumbledore finished his extensive speech Draco saw the food appear. Grabbing the nearest platter, he shoved the chips onto his plate. He needed to have a full stomach if he was going to deal with Luna Lovegood.

* * *

Luna didn't bother checking her plate for any suspicious sounds as she needed to hurry to get to her tutoring session on time. As she finished she noticed a lone black owl flying towards the Slytherin table. It landed directly in front of Draco Malfoy who opened it with a frown. The frown only deepened as he read the contents. Whatever it was she hoped that it wasn't too bad.

She sat down in the dungeons waiting for Draco to arrive. The bleak dungeon did nothing to make the wait any more bearable. Five minutes later he arrived scowling and grumbling about something. "Shall we get started?" She asked brightly.

He looked at her with a scowl and said, "What did you think I was going to do?"

Today they were working on the antidote to common poisons. The ingredients were laid out but Draco still seemed grumpy. He needed his focus on the potion, there wasn't a teacher here to save them from being blown to smithereens by a rogue ingredient hitting the flames. The way to keep his focus was to solve his problem.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"What do you mean what's wrong?" He answered, being completely unhelpful.

"What's bothering you? You came in here grumbling about something, what was bothering you?"

"Isn't it obvious? I lost my girlfriend." Luna had never been in a romantic relationship but she knew that losing someone you had feelings for couldn't be easy.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked gently.

His eyes narrowed, "Everyone seems to have already done the talking."

"What does that mean?" She asked confused.

"It doesn't matter what it means." He said with a sigh.

"I don't think you know anyway." Luna said looking at the tiny flying dots of glowing purple that were buzzing around Draco's head.

"Of course I know what I'm talking about." He said with a scowl.

"That's not what the Wrackspurts around your head are telling me." She said mimicking Draco's expression. His head turned to both sides in shock.

* * *

_Brilliant. The Loony talk has begun._ "What are you talking about?"

"Wrackspurts."

"There's nothing there." He said impatiently.

"You can't see them because you're not wearing spectrespecs or the 'contact lens' version of them."

"What are you- nevermind- Are you wearing the contact lens version?" He asked, hoping if he played along that the conversation would end quickly.

"Yes! My father designed them, it took him a long time to get it right."

"What _are_ 'Wrackspurts'?" He asked curiously.

"Well..." And with that Luna launched into a detailed explanation of what Wrackspurts were. The explanation wandered occasionally with her train of thought but overall it made sense to Draco. Neither of them noticed the time passing as their potions session turned into a magical creature's one.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

Draco walked down to potions with Luna Lovegood. Snape had told him that he wanted to have a meeting to check on their progress. There had only been two sessions so far so Draco didn't know what his godfather was expecting. Upon entering he saw his godfather quickly marking a bunch of papers with a frown on his face. "Professor?" He called out. Snape looked up and tilted his head for them to come in. Draco took a seat and waited for the stern professor to acknowledge them. The wait was in silence, the only sound being the scratching of the quill on paper. Draco knew this tactic well, it was to build up tension and make the people who were waiting nervous. His godfather should have known that this tactic wouldn't work on him. Maybe he did, perhaps he was just doing this so Lovegood would get nervous. But when Draco looked to where Luna was sitting he saw her watching what his godfather was doing with keen and interested eyes. Finally the scratching ceased and Draco looked back towards where his godfather was sitting in front of him.

"What progress have you made?" Snape drawled, looking straight at him.

"We managed to brew the boils curing potion successfully and are planning to brew the antidote to common poisons tonight." Draco said, mimicking his godfather's straightforwardness.

"What did you cover in the first session?"

"We brewed the boils curing potion."

"And in the last session?"

Draco's mind flashed back to the lengthy conversation on Wrackspurts, "We went over the ingredients and properties of the ingredients that make up the antidote to common poisons."

Snape's eyebrows furrowed as he scrutinised his godson. Draco kept his face straight and hoped that he wouldn't be caught out on his lie. Eventually his gaze relaxed and Draco stopped a sigh escaping as his godfather said, "Very well. You may go."

* * *

Luna always wondered why she was invited to those meetings. She was never really addressed in them, only talked about. When she remembered her astronomy homework, (and realised that she could have completed a large amount of it in that time), it made her wonder more. She left the dungeons immediately after they were dismissed hoping to get to the common room in time to get some work done before lunch finished. When she got there she found Cho and Ginny sat on her bed eating Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. "Hi," She said softly, hoping that she wasn't interrupting an important discussion.

Cho and Ginny looked up with bright smiles. "What happened at the meeting?" Ginny asked.

"We just went over what me and Draco have done in the past two sessions." Ginny went bright red and burst out laughing. Cho and Luna looked at their friend, concerned. "What's wrong?" Luna asked.

"Oh my goodness," Ginny exclaimed, attempting to catch her breath, "Is it bad that my immediate thought when you said, "what me and Draco have done" was 'each other'?" She said with a chuckle. Cho gasped and snorted but Luna didn't understand what they were getting at.

"What do you mean?" She asked, still confused. Then it dawned on her. "Ginny…" She couldn't help but laugh at the silliness of the comment but sobered up quickly when she remembered how upset Draco had been the night before about losing his girlfriend. "He was quite upset about losing his girlfriend last night."

"I'm not surprised; they seem like a perfect match. Both of them are as horrible as each other." Said Ginny.

Cho frowned and said, "They never really seemed all that close anyway. Maybe they were a more private couple, I did see them kissing in the astronomy tower one time. But that's the most I've seen."

"Parkinson clung to his arm all the time too, don't forget." Ginny said, rolling her eyes. "Do you have another tutoring session tonight?"

"Yeah, we're brewing the antidote to common poisons." Luna answered.

"I don't know why they're making you do these sessions anyway," Cho said with a huff, "It's not as if you're going to choose it for your O.W.L.S. The subject doesn't interest you so your focus is going to stray. I don't know what they were expecting."

"They're expecting me to get better. Draco is a good tutor and makes the sessions interesting. I think it might give me a new perspective in potions." She said sounding rather convincing to herself. Ginny and Cho both smiled kind smiles at her. She wanted to do well in these sessions.

After lunch ended Luna went to the two remaining classes of the day, transfiguration and defence against the dark arts. The time seemed to fly by and soon the school day was finished. Luna stayed in her common room finishing off all her homework until she was persuaded by Cho to go down to dinner. She finished eating quickly and made her way down to the dungeons.

Nearing the potions classroom she heard a loud bang and a yell. _What happened?_ Picking up her pace she entered the classroom to find what looked like Draco Malfoy covered in what seemed to be custard. _Why was he covered in custard?_ "Are you okay?" She asked, causing him to look up. She saw his eyes flash with what seemed like anger before they were forced closed by the river of custard flowing down his face.

"What do you think?" He snarled, quickly shutting his mouth before anything could get inside it.

"What happened?" She asked, looking around the room for any clues.

"I don't fucking know!" He burst out. Luna frowned at the bad language but thought now was not the right time to point it out. "How am I going to bloody clean myself up?!" Luna's frown deepened at the use of 'bloody' but ignored the bad language once again. She walked towards him, not noticing the custard that clung to the hem of her robes and pushed him gently into a chair.

"I'll do it." She offered with a smile he couldn't see.

"No you're not!" He protested, trying to wriggle out of her grasp. "You'll end up taking an eyeball out!"

"This isn't potions," She said gently, taking a deep breath to steady her voice. It seemed to calm Draco slightly which had been the aim. "This is charm and spell work, I can do a cleaning charm." He stopped wriggling but screwed his eyes shut as if he was expecting some kind of pain.

"Evanesco," She muttered, carefully concentrating on vanishing the custard and not Draco. She ran her wand over his robes, vanishing the custard effectively. She stepped away to admire her handiwork and quickly made her way to the sink. Grabbing a few paper towels and running them under water she went back to where Draco was sitting. She ran the wet tissue over his eyes first so he could see. He flinched but must have realised that it was only a paper towel since he didn't do it again.

* * *

He blinked rapidly, thankful to be able to see again. Luna was stood before him holding his chin in place and wiping his cheeks. He watched as she moved to his forehead, her eyes alert and concentrating on getting him clean. She stood back to give him a once over and proclaimed, "You're clean!" He stood up, slightly embarrassed that he'd had to be cleaned up like a toddler. He cleared his throat nervously, his cheeks going slightly red.

"Uhm- uh thanks." Luna looked up at him with a smile.

"You're welcome."

* * *

Neither of them noticed Pansy Parkinson scowling through a crack in the door.

* * *

**AN: The spell "Evanesco" was found on the Harry Potter wikia on the list of spells. It's the "Vanishing Charm" :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**If you've left a comment then I'll definitely reply to it; if I do miss a review or don't reply to one then it was probably an accident :) I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Chapter 5

Luna awoke with a smile and descended the stairs from the girl's dormitories into the common room. The large windows let the light flow in and gave her a stunning view of the grounds and the surrounding mountains. Still in her pyjamas she began reading the book her father had sent her yesterday morning. It detailed the characteristics and habitat of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Delicately opening the front cover she began reading.

A flash from across the room startled her out of her research. She turned to find a sheepish looking Colin Creevey. "Hiya Colin," She said welcomingly. Colin wasn't a Ravenclaw so Luna wanted to make sure he felt welcome in the tower.

"Sorry for disturbing you," He mumbled.

"I didn't mind. Did you stay here overnight?" Colin nodded with a smile.

"I was working on a homework project for charms." Luna smiled, perhaps she could help.

"Did you finish it?" She asked. Colin nodded his head but the slight disappointment she felt didn't show on her face. "Are you leaving now?"

"Yeah, I've got to get changed into a new set of robes before breakfast." He smiled and walked to the door. "Bye!"

"Bye!"

Luna had just finished her breakfast. She usually completed her homework if she finished early but she had done all that the night before. As if the castle had read her mind the owls flew in. She hadn't thought of going outside but today was as good a day as any. Luna said bye to her friends and made her way outside.

The fresh morning air was cool on her face, especially after the heat in the great hall. She walked around for a little bit, examining the flowers on the ground and the birds in the trees. A whisper of a curse was the only thing that warned her of what happened next.

* * *

Draco was late to breakfast. His bed seemed to become more and more appealing as each day passed. As he was about to enter the great hall he saw a crowd of people pushing to get outside. _What was happening?_ Pushing his way through the press of people he managed to make it to the front. What he saw horrified him.

Luna Lovegood seemed to be restrained by some kind of spell while Pansy stood over her, screaming obscenities in her face. "You stole my boyfriend! You whore; you've probably been shagging him down in the dungeons! That's where you go every night, isn't it?!" Pansy's own thoughts seemed to infuriate her even more and Draco knew what was coming before it happened. Running forward he dived in front of Luna as the curse left Pansy's wand. He barely even registered her scream of horror and the thud of Luna dropping to the ground as he felt his leg slice open. Everything went black.

When he awoke Draco found himself in the hospital wing. Pansy was awake on one side of him whilst Luna was in the next bed unconscious. Hadn't _he_ taken the hit? Madame Pomfrey walked over to Pansy's bedside and said, "You're all good to leave now." He quickly shut his eyes as Pansy's gaze turned his way.

With a sigh she said, "I thought we'd leave together. I'll visit when he's awake."

"Mr Malfoy is seriously injured. It would do to let him have the rest he needs." He heard a huff and then the sound of footsteps leaving the hospital wing. He opened his eyes in relief only to find Madame Pomfrey smiling kindly at him. She walked over to his bedside and pressed the back of her hand against his forehead and cheek. "No sign of a fever," she said brightly.

"What happened to my leg? I remember it getting hit by a curse but I don't know what happened to it."

The nurse frowned a little but said, "It has been cut quite deeply I'm afraid. We've gotten it closed up but the pain is going to be there for a few days. You're going to be staying here for the next couple of days."

"And her?" Draco said, tilting his head to where Luna was lying unconscious.

"Despite you taking the brunt of the curse Miss Lovegood still has a deep cut on her leg." She smiled at him and said, "That was a brave thing you did Mr Malfoy." He shook his head.

"I'd like to rest now." He said. Draco was uncomfortable with the attention the nurse was giving him and was angry that he hadn't managed to save Luna. _You took the biggest hit. And since when did you care so much about saving Lovegood?_ He was tired; some rest would do him good.

He woke up again some time later. An owl was perched on the table beside his hospital bed. Draco pulled the envelope from its beak and watched as it flew away. "You're awake." Said a soft voice. He looked away from the window the owl had just flown out of and at Luna's large eyes.

"More like _you're_ awake." He said, "I was awake earlier but you weren't."

"Well," Luna said, "I'm glad we're both awake at the same time. I was beginning to get bored." She looked down to her hands where she was holding a letter. He watched as she gently pried it open and read its contents. Draco turned to his own and read:

_Draco,_

_I have been informed that you are in the hospital wing after being hit with a rather nasty curse. Your mother is fretting, please write back to calm her. I also want to discuss Miss Parkinson. According to her sisters whom she has written to, the 'breakup' was not at all 'not your fault' as you stated in your reply to my last letter. I hope that you will see reason and make amends with the girl. She is from a respectable family. You would reject her for Xenophilius Lovegood's daughter? Ridiculous. Both father and daughter are insane. They are not respected in our community. Would you really want to bring our family that kind of shame? Think about what you are doing._

_Sincerely,_

_Your father._

Draco rolled his eyes at the letter. Where on Earth had his father gotten that he was with Lovegood?! If he was even thinking about getting back with Pansy those thoughts were now gone after finding out she was such a snitch. He would have to write back to soothe his mother's fears and address the ridiculous notion that he was with Luna Lovegood. As if his own father believed that nonsense! He looked over to where Luna was sitting with a beam on her face. Her letter had probably contained some nonsense about 'Wrackspurts'. He rolled his eyes at the thought of being her boyfriend.

* * *

Luna had been sat in her hospital bed surrounded by silence. It was incredibly boring; she didn't know how Draco hadn't fallen back asleep. She looked over to his bed to find him lying down with a frown on his face. "What's wrong?" She called out as loudly as she dared. The walls echoed every sound you made and Luna didn't want to wake up the patient that was asleep at the other end of the hospital wing.

She saw Draco take a deep breath and heard an audible sigh before he lifted up the letter in his hand and said, "Pansy."

"She wrote to you?" Luna asked, confused. She had thought he wanted to get back with her, so why was he unhappy to be hearing from her?

"My father wrote to me." Luna cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out the problem. Pansy was troubling him and she had something to do with the letter in his hand. His father had written the letter. So clearly Draco's father must have had something to say about the breakup. Poor Draco, she was sure he didn't want to be reminded of his heartbreak whilst he was injured.

"What did he say?"

Draco arched an eyebrow at her but it seemed to slump back down again as he spoke, "He wants me to get back with her."

Now Luna was even more confused, "But I thought you said you were upset about the breakup." A derisive snort told her she must have been mistaken.

"I was annoyed about my father telling me to get back with her that night. He had sent me a letter at dinner."

"Ooh." The fragmented pieces of information in Luna's mind came together quickly and she realised that he was _happy_ to be out of his relationship.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 6

Draco felt sleep grip him as soon as the entertaining conversation he'd had with Luna ended. The hosp…

_He couldn't breathe. He was underwater and couldn't get out. Black spots appeared at the edge of his vision and struggling was making everything worse. Then suddenly light filtered through the dark water and a hand reached to pull him out. He felt something on his ankle as he spluttered uncontrollably. Looking down he saw Luna, soaked through. She must have been in the water with him. Who had pulled him out? He looked up to find Pansy staring down at him, his parents at either side of her. All three of them looked down at Luna with expressions of distaste. "Blood traitor." His mother whispered, looking at her._

_"_ _Insane." His father sneered._

_Pansy stepped forward, "Whore." She grabbed Luna's arms and pushed. He saw Luna's frightened expression as the water consumed her and realised too late that she still had a hold of his ankle. He went down with her._

He woke up with a gasp, tears streaming down his face. The sobs that racked his body were easy enough to hide, but the shuddering hiccoughs escaping his mouth weren't so easily hidden.

* * *

Luna's eyes slowly opened to the dark hospital roof. Turning her head to the side she found the source of the noise that had woken her. Draco. Sitting up slowly so as to not wake Colin up, (he was the new patient), she tiptoed across the short gap between their beds. A hiccough and a snuffle met her ears. She bent low to whisper, "Draco." He jolted, startled by her sudden presence.

"What do you want?" He whispered, not coming out of the covers. Luna squeezed her eyes shut to brace herself against the cold draught that had swirled around her.

"I wanted to know if you're okay."

"Well I'm not." He hissed. "What are you going to do?" Luna wanted to stay to help Draco with what was bothering him but the cold was making it difficult to get her words out. Suddenly hit with an idea Luna lifted Draco's covers slightly and slipped in. "What are you doing?" He growled.

"I wanted to help but I was cold." She stated simply. Yawning Luna waited for Draco to explain why he was upset. But she was only met with silence. She snuggled further in, realising this would be a long wait.

She didn't realise when she drifted off. Neither did Draco.

Luna woke in the morning suddenly. What had woken her? Looking around she saw Colin Creevey stood at the foot of the bed about to walk away. "What were you doing?" Luna asked. Colin jumped slightly.

"N-nothing." Luna yawned sleepily. It had probably just been his footsteps.

"Goodnight." She murmured, forgetting about the light streaming through the windows of the hospital wing. She snuggled back into the covers and felt her body brushing against someone else's. She jumped like she had just been electric shocked. Then she remembered. Draco. Thankfully she hadn't woken him. He rolled over and slung an arm around her waist. It was a rather comforting gesture. It felt like a sort of safe guard. She drifted off once again.

* * *

Draco was excited. It was the end of the year and it was time to see who had won the house cup. Draco hoped it would be Slytherin. They _had_ to have won it. "-but before we announce the winners of the house cup we would like to show you a new addition to our end of year feasts. As you may recall, at the start of the year we asked permission from your parents to have your pictures taken throughout the year. Mr Creevey has taken many although a lot have been cut out." Dumbledore spread his arms gesturing to the space behind him. The floating candles above them blew out and the pictures appeared. The first one was of a first year, (Draco didn't know his name) flying on a broom. It must have been his first time on one. The Hufflepuff table let out a small cheer for him so Draco assumed that was his house. The next one was of Seamus Finnigan stood over a cauldron with his hair blown back and soot on his face. He must have gotten this taken after a cauldron explosion. The third one was of Luna Lovegood reading a book in Ravenclaw's common room. She was reading a book and the light from the tall windows was streaming through her hair. She looked quite pretty. He shook his head at the thought but then mentally berated himself. _You're allowed to think she's pretty. It's not as if you're professing your undying love._ The fourth picture was of Ronald Weasley. He quickly lost interest as the photo's that came up rarely showed anybody he knew. Then suddenly his face was projected on the wall. He was stood over a cauldron with his sleeves rolled back. He looked pretty good. He lost interest quickly enough though. Small snacks and drinks had appeared on the table and as he was about to grab a handful of crisps he was nudged in the side by Goyle. When he looked up his cheeks flushed with embarrassment. How had Creevey gotten _that_ picture?!

* * *

Luna looked at the picture projected on the wall. It was of her and Draco lying in the hospital bed. Her head was tucked under his chin and he had an arm wrapped around her. It looked rather artistic. The pictures faded from the wall and the food appeared. Nobody wasted any time in tucking in.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 7

_First day back at school,_ Draco thought as he kissed his mother on both cheeks goodbye. He double checked quickly to see that no one had seen him and made his way towards the train. Boarding the Hogwarts Express Draco looked around to find an empty compartment. He hadn't seen Crabbe or Goyle yet so he sat in what seemed like the only free one to wait for them. They _would_ be late on the first day.

Two minutes later Draco looked up to the sound of his compartment door sliding open. His cheeks flushed when he saw who it was. Luna Lovegood. "Can I sit in here?" She asked. Thoughts of the pictures at the end of last year raced through his mind and suddenly halted at the sound of her voice.

"Sure." He said, trying to sound disinterested. Luna entered slowly; Draco could see her in the window's reflection. She took the seat opposite him, making him grimace. He was going to have to look her in the eyes sooner or later.

At the end of last year the tutoring sessions had been stopped after the incident with Pansy. However during the holidays his godfather had come to visit, telling him that they were to continue when they got back to school.

As if Luna had read his mind she said, "The tutoring sessions are going to start again."

"Yes they are." He said, turning to look at her. This had been the first time in six weeks he had seen her face so close. Her silvery grey eyes were as large as ever and her dirty blonde hair hung in delicate waves.

"When is the first session?" She asked tilting her head to the side. _Why did she always do that?!_

"Tonight." He said. He had decided that he wanted to get the tutoring sessions over with as soon as was possible. And the only way to do that was to start early.

"Okay." She said nonchalantly. Draco's mind flashed back to their first couple of sessions. He remembered how he had been surprised that she had given in to his point without any resistance. This time, though it had taken him by surprise it wasn't as unexpected as the first time she had done it. Perhaps he was getting used to her peculiar ways.

"We'll be at Hogwarts soon!" Came a high pitched voice from a carriage further down. Draco decided that it was about time he got changed into his robes. They were going to be at school soon.

"I'm going to get changed." He grunted getting out of his seat. Luna didn't make a comment.

Now that he was changed he made his way back to the compartment. On the way he looked for another empty one but to no avail. There was no sign of Crabbe or Goyle either. Where were they? The small curtains that covered the windows of the compartment were closed but Draco didn't bother wondering what it meant. Luna was probably looking for some creature or another. However the gasp that met his ears and the sight that met his eyes proved him wrong. Luna stood before him frozen in place, her eyes wide and half naked. He instinctively covered his eyes but it was too late. He had already seen her. He heard footsteps coming from behind him and rushed to close the door to give Luna some privacy. In his haste his hands fumbled and the person who the footsteps belonged to appeared beside Draco. Blaise Zabini. Blaise gasped and also covered his eyes mumbling, "Sorry I disturbed." Draco heard more footsteps coming and quickly entered the compartment and shut the doors.

"You can keep on getting changed, I won't look." He muttered facing the sliding doors.

Now in the great hall Draco could hear whispers of the incident. The recounts he heard were mostly false and greatly exaggerated. That was only to be expected though. He settled quickly to watch the sorting wondering who would be placed in Slytherin this year. Hopefully it wasn't anyone as incompetent as his friends who had gotten him in this mess.

* * *

Luna sat down in her seat beside Cho to be immediately bombarded with questions. "Was he any good?"

"Is it true?"

"Does he have abs?"

"What does his hair feel like?"

The questions mainly came from people she had never spoken to before and Luna didn't have any idea about what they were talking about. "What are you talking about?"

"Draco!" Said the girl opposite her in a voice too loud to be a whisper.

"What about him?"

"Did you…" The girl raised her eyebrows and wiggled them, making Luna laugh. However the girl, seeing that Luna wasn't about to answer, said, "Did you 'get together'?" Luna didn't know why the girl- who she had just remembered was a third year called Poppy- made speech marks around the words 'get together' but she didn't point it out. Luna expected she was tired from all the travelling.

"On the train? Yes." Luna said with a smile, greatly confused by the excited squeals that came up from around her.

She didn't see Cho mouthing, 'it's true' to Ginny across the room. She didn't know that her friends were planning on having a 'chat' with her later that evening. All she knew for the moment was that the sorting was coming up and her tutoring session with Draco was tonight. She would have to remember to ask him what all this fuss was about. She watched as professor Dumbledore stood up to make his annual speech. They were always very entertaining.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 8

Draco had just made his way down to the dungeons. He wasn't feeling particularly optimistic about this session after his short time at the dinner table. Whilst sat at the Slytherin table he had heard that Pansy had been made a tutor for potions as well and Draco knew that she wouldn't let any interaction he had with Luna go without extreme analysis. Despite the fact that he knew there was nothing going on, her scrutinising stare would undoubtedly make him feel and therefore look guilty. The rumours of himself and Luna didn't seem like they had escaped Pansy's notice and he dreaded to think of how she would react. Not well, that was for sure. Draco didn't know what she would stoop to this time considering the last time had landed him in hospital. Saying bye to Crabbe and Goyle he left the great hall for the dungeons.

Upon arrival he saw Pansy with the student she was tutoring. Lucian Bole. As soon as she saw Draco Pansy began giggling and flicking her hair. Was this an attempt to make him jealous? He almost felt bad for Bole; Draco knew how uncomfortable Pany's attentions could be. But before he could help the poor sod out Luna appeared beside him. "Shall we get started?" She breathed.

The tutoring session had been a nightmare. Pansy had looked over and glared at Luna every opportunity she had gotten and whenever she saw Draco looking her way she turned on the charms with Bole. Lucian Bole was a seventh year, Draco didn't know what Pansy thought she could achieve but he knew that the seventh year, quidditch playing male was sought after. Attentions like Pansy's weren't anything different from what the poor lad had forced upon him every day. Not that Draco cared. It was just incredibly distracting when he was trying to concentrate and he could feel Pansy's eyes boring into his back. Clambering into his bed he drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

The day after her first tutoring session of the year, Luna made her way to Charms. The tutoring session had gone well the night before however Luna couldn't help but notice the odd looks Pansy had been giving her. Perhaps they should have a talk with each other about it. Walking into the classroom Luna closed her eyes tight. She couldn't believe she had forgotten to ask Draco about the fuss everyone was making last night! Well they were in the same lesson; she could ask him when he arrived.

Everyone settled into their seats and Luna noticed that the staring contest from last year had carried on into this year. Ginny and Pansy weren't breaking eye contact. If Luna hadn't known better she would've thought they were casting incredibly complicated charms. Luna didn't know what they were trying to achieve but it certainly wasn't charms related. She noticed a gentle shift in the room when Draco entered. Eyes darted between Luna and him and she realised she needed to get to the bottom of what everyone was talking about. "Draco," She called out. Not too loudly though, the room was too quiet for yelling. When Draco turned to look at her she tilted her head to the empty seat beside her. Cho sat on the other side of Ginny. His eyebrows furrowed for a moment before his eyes flicked up to Pansy. The look seemed to be the deciding factor for Draco as he made his way to the seat next to her.

Fifteen minutes later and they were moving on to practical work. Professor Flitwick had paired everyone up with who they were sat next to so Luna was with Draco. As they walked to the back corner of the classroom Luna said, "I needed to ask you something."

A huffed, "What?" Was the only response she got.

"A lot of people seemed to be talking about me- and you." Draco stopped and turned on his heel.

"What they were saying were just rumours." He hissed in her ear.

"But I don't even understand what they were talking about." She said with a frown.

"It doesn't matter what they said." Just then they heard a loud giggle from across the room. It was Pansy who was leaning her head against a confused looking Blaise Zabini's chest.

* * *

Draco's jaw tightened at the sound of the irritating giggle. A trying first two lessons had been enough for his patience. He turned to see Pansy Parkinson with her head against Blaise's chest. She was trying to make him jealous. Two could play that game. He turned to Luna and looked into her silvery eyes. He registered shock passing across her face but paid it no heed, dipping his head low to catch her lips with his.

* * *

Luna saw, from the corner of her eye, the tightening of Draco's jaw. He turned to her and she was surprised to see the huge range of emotions in his eyes. She was so distracted by his eyes that she didn't realise he was dipping his head. Her mind only clicked back to the present when she felt her lips being captured by his.

* * *

**AN: Lucian Bole was an actual student at Hogwarts; he was sorted into Slytherin and was also on the Slytherin Quidditch team :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 9

It was break and Luna found herself being dragged to the Ravenclaw common room by her friends. Once there she was pulled up the stairs into the dormitories. "Why didn't you tell us?!" Demanded Ginny. Luna frowned, what was her friend talking about?

"What?" She asked.

"You and Draco! Don't play dumb!" Luna had to suppress a smile. Although Luna could tell Ginny was being serious about whatever she was talking about she couldn't help but be amused by how flustered her friend was.

"I'm not playing dumb," She said gently, "I asked Draco about why everyone was talking about the both of us and he said it was just rumours. I still don't know what everyone was talking about though."

"Rumours?!" Cho exclaimed. "I don't think they're rumours if he _kissed_ you in the middle of class!"

"What _are_ these rumours?" Luna asked.

Cho rolled her eyes as Ginny begun pacing, "The 'rumours' are that you and Draco are a couple. Or at least 'together' in some way." Luna laughed, _that was all?!_

"We're not." Luna said with a chuckle.

"Why did you say the other night that you 'did it' on the train?!"

"What?" Luna asked laughing, "Where did you get that from?"

"You said it when that girl Poppy asked."

"I said that we were together on the train, not that we were 'doing it'." Luna said mimicking her friend.

"Where did the rumours come from then?" Ginny asked, her eyebrows raised.

"There's no smoke without fire." Cho said agreeing with a sagely frown. Luna simply shrugged.

"I want to get some food before break ends."

"Let's go." Ginny frowned. "We're going to talk about this later."

It was time for the tutoring session. Luna was planning on asking Draco where the rumours had come from. Cho was probably right. There was no smoke without fire. Well unless it was a dragon that was struggling- "Lovegood." Came a hissed whisper from behind her. She turned around to find Draco in a shadowy corridor, illuminated a soft blue by the moonlight that came through the window. She tiptoed over seeing that this was meant to be a private discussion.

"What?" She whispered.

"I wanted to talk about today's Charms lesson." Luna wondered if her questions would be answered before she had to ask them. "Listen. I'm sorry if I caught you of guard or anything-"

"Well, you did but I didn't mind," She interrupted.

* * *

Draco frowned at her complacency with the situation and carried on, trying not to sound perturbed. "I want- need us to do that again." He saw Luna's eyes widen and hoped he hadn't scared her with his forwardness. But they were going to have to do it again if he was to keep up the act of them being together. Making Pansy jealous had given him a strange satisfaction. "Look we need to keep this up- well that's if you want to." He took a deep breath. He was going to deliver his final request. "From now on- if you agree with this- we are a 'couple'. Okay?" He said with finger speech marks. Luna looked like she wasn't paying attention but before Draco got too worried she nodded. Brilliant, he thought, everything's going to plan. "Let's go."

Pansy and Lucian hadn't arrived yet and Draco was glad. He didn't want to act like he was with Luna Lovegood for as long as was possible. But eventually they arrived and Draco quickly moved from his side of the table to Luna's side and put his arm around her waist. He avoided her surprised look and looked up to pretend he had just seen Pansy and Lucian. He saw Pansy's eyes flick to the arm he had draped around Luna's waist and tried not to laugh at her infuriated look. He jerked his arm away from Luna as if he was trying to keep what they were doing under wraps and looked down at his feet pretending to be embarrassed. This only seemed to further infuriate Pansy and Draco tried not to let his inner emotions show. After what seemed like a tense ten minutes but was actually a moment of two the silent exchange was over.

The tutoring session was nearly over and it had gone exactly the way he had wanted it to. Whilst making the potion he kept sneaking in little touches that were 'more than friendly' and he knew that Pansy had noticed them. They had just bottled up the potion and had put it on Professor Snape's desk. He walked out of the dungeons with Luna beside him and his ex and Bole behind him. When they made it to the end of the echoey corridor he whispered, "Bye Luna." He was just about to turn away when he felt a hand on his arm. Draco looked at Luna questioningly and was about to ask her what she wanted when she leant towards him and caught his lips with her own.

* * *

Luna saw that Draco was about to turn away when the idea struck her. If they were a couple now then she wanted to test their 'chemistry'. Ginny and Cho were always talking about a spark lovers had and she wanted to see if her and Draco had one. Leaning forwards she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. His lips were soft yet firm and became firmer still when he deepened the kiss. She stumbled a little as he pushed her backwards so she had her back against the wall. He had one hand deeply rooted in her hair and the other trapped between her back and the wall. Luna heard a gasp from Draco as she traced small circles on the back of his neck. She finally felt him pull away and panting, looked up at him. She saw a mixture of emotions in his eyes but the predominant one- well there was no predominant one. It was a mixture of what seemed like shock and smugness paired with desire and hunger. Well if she _had_ to choose shock would be the predominant one.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 10

Luna woke up the next day feeling incredibly refreshed. Scrambling out of bed she pulled on a yellow top with light blue skinny jeans. She dug through the hangers in her wardrobe until she found the one that held her pink pea coat. Today was a Hogsmeade weekend.

Skipping down the steps to breakfast with her coat in hand she almost collided headfirst with Ginny. "Slow down!" Ginny said with a laugh.

"Where were you going?" Luna asked.

"To find you and Cho- well look, here she comes!" Luna looked back and there was Cho, hurrying down the steps in her robes.

"Why're you wearing your robes?" Ginny asked as she came to a stop beside Luna. Cho looked at her two friends and her eyes widened in realisation.

"It's a weekend!" She exclaimed, her hand clapped over her mouth when she realised how loud she had been.

"Let's go back upstairs." Luna suggested.

Once they had wardrobe sorted and Cho had gotten her way about doing Luna's hair they made their way back downstairs to the great hall. They seemed to be just on time and there was enough space for Ginny to join them on the Ravenclaw table. They sat down and Luna handed plates to her friends. Toast and pancakes were the first things on her plate and she pulled a cup of tea towards her. She took a grateful sip from her cup but paused when she noticed the presence of someone beside her. Looking at her friends faces she guessed it was someone horrible but when she looked up she found only Draco Malfoy. She smiled at him and gestured for him to sit beside her. "I can't, Crabbe and Goyle are waiting. I just wanted to say hi." And with that he bent low and brushed her cheek with his lips. She turned back to her friends and tried not to laugh at the stunned expressions that graced their faces.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Y- You…" Cho began, shaking her head.

"You're _with_ Draco?" Ginny hissed, her eyes darting around. Luna could tell that she didn't want to make a scene.

"We'll talk about it at Hogsmeade." Cho said with a smile, trying to fool any passers-by.

* * *

They were at Hogsmeade and Draco was trying to hide from his friends. _I should not have done that,_ he thought to himself. What had been the need to kiss her on the cheek in front of _everyone_? He had wanted to make Pansy jealous- and he had- but now all of his friends were attempting to sniff him out to bombard him with questions. He was going to have to tell them that he was 'going out' with Luna but it wasn't going to be easy. He really hadn't thought this plan through. Sneaking past shop windows he quickly entered The Three Broomsticks. The small inn was packed to the brim. _Perfect_. Draco made his way to the counter and ordered a butterbeer. Once he had been handed it he made his way to the back to see if he could find anyone he knew that wouldn't want to ask him so many questions. Who was he kidding?! Everyone wanted to ask him questions. He looked around for an empty table instead when his eyes fell on familiar dirty blonde hair. He ducked under the arm of someone and dodged a waitress with a tray before getting to the table. _Oh god, she's with Weasley._ He fought the urge to make a face at the redhead and cleared his throat to get their attention. He slipped into the seat beside Luna and put his arm around her waist. "Hi." He heard Luna say in her soft voice.

"Hi." He said back and nodded at the two other girls sat at the table.

"We were just talking about you." Weasley said scrutinising him.

"I hope it was nothing unpleasant." He said, forcing a laugh.

"We were just asking how you got into a relationship." Said the girl beside Weasley. Cho Chang.

"Now that you're both here we can get the full story." Said Ginny with a smile he could tell was forced.

"Of course," He said, "Why don't you start Luna?"

"Where should I start from?" She asked.

"Hmmm, the custard incident?" He suggested. Luna laughed. The sound of it still surprised him after listening to Pansy's giggles for so long.

"Okay." She said turning to her friends, "I was walking down to a tutoring session and I heard a bang. I went to see what happened and I saw Draco _covered_ in custard. He was head to toe completely covered. I helped him up and cleaned him up." Draco let out a laugh.

"I thought you were going to take my eye out."

"I didn't, I told you I was good with charms." Luna said with a small smile.

"That you are though you didn't risk my face." He said.

"I wiped that clean with tissue because I didn't want to make any of your face vanish." She said with a chuckle.

"I think that's when I first realised I had some kind of attraction to you." He saw Luna's cheeks turn a little pink. She was playing her part perfectly. Yesterday she had kissed him in front of Pansy and today she was making herself blush. "You were standing over me with a look of concentration in your eyes whilst cleaning my face." He said pulling her a little closer to him.

"That couldn't have been the only thing that got you into a relationship." Ginny said, one eyebrow arched.

"You're right. It wasn't." He said. "The next time I felt that way about Luna was when we were in the hospital wing. We had quite a few entertaining conversations and I realised she had more than looks." He thought hard trying to gather more evidence to prove the existence of their 'relationship'. "I had a bad turn whilst in the hospital and she stayed with me through the night to make me feel better. Do you remember the picture of us both at the end of last year?" Cho nodded. "That was that night. Then I realised through the holidays that I wanted to see if we could be in a relationship. When we got back to school I decided to wait and see if she had changed through the holidays. When I saw she was still the same Luna I decided to ask her out." He shrugged and looked down at Luna fondly. He was genuinely grateful for the comfort she had provided him that night and this was his way of thanking her. She shifted a little in his arms so her head rested against his shoulder. Draco looked down at her hair and noticed the soft waves it was in. "Your hair looks lovely." He murmured just loud enough for Luna's friends to hear.

He heard a whispered, "See this is why she should let me do her hair." From Cho and concealed a smirk by resting his cheek against Luna's head.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 11

Draco settled into bed gratefully. He had escaped the dining hall before too many questions hit him and was now lying in bed thinking what a success the day had been. He had managed to trick Luna's friends into thinking they were actually together. Luna was playing her part well which surprised him. Lying seemed to come naturally to her...

Draco awoke with a gasp. The room around him was silent and dark. He could feel the sweat on his back and hear his ragged breathing. Remnants from the dream flashed through his mind. Luna standing in her underwear. The feel of her hair in his hands. He shook his head. Where had these thoughts come from?! Grabbing the glass of water by his bed he took a grateful gulp and willed himself to calm down. It wasn't working. Draco sighed and resigned himself to a night of fitful sleeping.

Waking up in the morning Draco made his way straight to the shower. He was up early and was glad for the time he had alone. He closed his eyes as the warm water hit his shoulders and revelled in how relaxed he felt until he had to address a problem. Looking down he saw that his dream the night before was still on his mind. Well, he was going to have to take care of it...

* * *

Luna made her way downstairs to breakfast. She wasn't going to Hogsmeade today as she had schoolwork to finish. Her friends however, were going and were attempting to convince her to leave her work behind. "Come _on_ Luna!" Cho insisted. "Just leave the schoolwork behind for one day!"

Luna shook her head, "I left it yesterday." She said with a smile.

"But Luna, we'll have so much fun!" Ginny groaned.

"The next time we go Hogsmeade I'll go both days but my homework is due in tomorrow."

"Fine." Both her friends said with a huff.

"Let's have breakfast."

Luna was sat in her empty dormitory doing her work. Lunch was coming soon and she was planning on bringing it upstairs so she could carry on her work without too much interruption. _Only five more minutes..._

Luna walked down to the Ravenclaw table and picked up a plate. She filled it with roasted chicken, potatoes and greens before pouring a little bit of gravy over the top. She was just about to leave when she noticed someone stood by her. She turned around and smiled at who she saw. Draco Malfoy. Her boyfriend. It still felt strange to think of him as her boyfriend but Luna was trying to get used to it. "Hi." He said with a soft smile.

"Hi. Haven't you gone to Hogsmeade?" She asked.

"No, I needed to get some work done. You didn't either." He answered.

"I had work too."

"Why don't you come to the Slytherin common room? We can work together." Luna smiled at the suggestion. It was a good idea. She'd be able to get through her work much faster working with someone else.

"I'll get my work and I'll be there."

"I'll wait for you outside. You need the password to get in."

Luna walked down the cold corridor to the Slytherin common room. She could see Draco waiting at the end and saw him whisper the password to the stone wall behind him. It opened up and he disappeared inside just as she reached it. She passed through the cold passageway into a room lit with green lamps. The walls were decorated with tapestries and Luna could hear a soft swishing noises but couldn't pinpoint where from. "Come on." Draco said, gesturing for her to follow him to what she presumed were the dormitories. She was right. The four poster beds were decorated with green silk hangings and there were silver lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Looking out of a window Luna gasped. She heard a laugh from behind her.

"We're under the lake." She breathed.

"Yes we are. Can you hear that sound?" Luna nodded. "That's the lake." Luna took in her surroundings. The calming sound of the lake must be brilliant for those who wished to concentrate or relax.

* * *

Draco watched as Luna looked around the room in wonder. "It must be brilliant to study in here." She said in awe. He stopped himself from snorting. _Such a Ravenclaw._

"Well you're about to find out."

They had nearly finished their work. Luna had helped him along with his charms work. He hadn't needed the help but it had certainly speeded things along. The main purpose of asking her down here was to make Pansy jealous. She had also stayed back and Draco didn't doubt it was to see what he was doing. The two of them were sat on his bed and memories of what he had dreamt just hours ago were resurfacing. He attempted to squash the thoughts he was having but it wasn't working. "Finished." Luna said triumphantly. He looked at the girl sat before him. He knew what was under her clothes. He had dreamt about it the night before. But now he wanted to experience it for himself. _What am I thinking? She'll get the wrong message._ He thought.

"Luna." Her eyes met his. "I am going to do something in a moment and I don't want you to take it for anything more than it is." She nodded, looking amused. He leant forward and kissed her. It was the third time their lips had met and Draco still had exploring to do. He felt Luna's arms wrap around his neck and tried not to moan as the kiss deepened. His tongue was granted access to Luna's mouth the moment it asked permission and he returned the favour for Luna. Draco leant forward so he was above Luna and snaked one of his hands through her hair and the other beneath her lilac jumper. He pulled away from her momentarily to catch his breath and looked into Luna's eyes. Not waiting a moment longer than he had to he caught her lips again and began from where he left off. He could feel Luna doing her own exploring. Gentle fingers under his shirt were running across his stomach, tracing along the lines of his abs. He was just about to give her equal attention when he heard a gasp from the doorway.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 12

Draco paused immediately and looked to where the sound had come from. Pansy stood in the doorway, face red and fists clenched. _Shit._ Draco sat up slowly and noticed that Luna was looking at the doorway with interest. "Pansy..." He said slowly, not wanting to set her off.

"You... _slut_." Pansy hissed, ignoring him and addressing Luna.

"P-" But he didn't get to finish as the girl in the doorway lunged forward, a look of pure malice in her eyes. Draco jumped off the bed to stop her but ended up getting knocked backwards by the force of Pansy's body weight. _Not again._ He grabbed Pansy who was scrambling determinedly towards Luna and flipped her on her back. She struggled to get out of his grip and he held her wrists over her head attempting to calm her down. It wasn't working.

"WHAT is going on here?!" Came a snarl from the doorway.

"Help uncle!" He yelled. His godfather quickly got over the shock of what he had walked in on and cast a quick 'immobulus' on Pansy. Draco let go in relief and sat back, leaning his head against one of the posts of his bed.

"My office. Now." The potions professor bit out. Draco looked down quickly as Snape's eyes came to rest on him.

* * *

Luna was seated in Professor Snape's office and all was completely silent. The silence was eventually broken by the stern professor. "What is your explanation?" Was the simple question uttered from his thin lips. Though the professor _looked_ calm Luna could see the tell-tale signs to show he was feeling the opposite. His shoulders were tense and his lips were thin. Her observations were disturbed by Draco's voice.

"Well professor," He began carefully, having clearly noticed the same tell-tale signs she had. "Me and Luna were in my room and had just finished our work. We were just talking-"

" _Just talking?!_ " Pansy exclaimed and Luna noticed professor Snape glare before quickly schooling his expression into one of disinterest again. "Oh you have _got_ to be kidding me! You were all over her!" She snarled pointing directly at Luna.

"Miss Parkinson, it is rude to point." Drawled professor Snape.

"I don't really care professor." She spat out and was about to carry on what she was going to say when she was cut off by the potions master.

"Detention miss Parkinson." He said smoothly.

"What for?!" She exclaimed, seeming surprised.

"Your impertinence." He said as he stood up. "You may leave." He said to them all. Luna stood up only to be shoved to the side by Pansy making her way out of the office. Quickly righting herself she left the cold stone room.

Luna was now sitting in the Gryffindor girl's dormitory with Ginny and Cho. "She did _what?!_ " Ginny exclaimed. "I wish I was there, I would've battered her." Luna let out a laugh. The two girls had just been asking why she had been late to meet them.

"But why did she try and hurt you?" Cho asked, concerned.

Luna shrugged, "I was with Draco in his dorm-"

"Wait." Ginny said with a groan. "You were 'making out' weren't you?"

Luna nodded and continued, "Then Pansy must have seen beca-"

"Luna she was jealous and went all psycho on you when there wasn't even anything going on between you and Draco. If she walked in on you doing what you were doing then she _would've_ gone psycho." Ginny said, leaning her head against one of the posts of her bed. She laughed, "I'd pay to see the look on her face when she saw you."

"Well," Luna said. "She was quite red." She didn't get to continue her description as both her friends were laughing. "Why are you laughing?" She asked.

"She was red," Ginny kept on laughing. "She probably looked like a tomato!"

"And _imagine_ the look on her face!" Cho said, gasping as she snorted.

* * *

Draco was sitting in his dormitory with Blaise Zabini. He had just come back from Hogsmeade and had brought back some things for Draco as he hadn't gone today. "Why didn't you come today anyway?" Blaise asked.

"I had loads of work. I swear Flitwick needs to calm down, I can barely keep up." His friend laughed.

"I feel bad for you. All this time you've been doing work and I've been going round Hogsmeade having a laugh."

"I wasn't doing work _all_ this time." Draco said with a frown.

"What else were you doing?"

"I was in Snape's office for the last half an hour."

"How come?" His friend asked, leaning forward. He was clearly interested.

"Pansy went off on one again." Blaise snorted.

"What did you do to set her off?"

" _I_ didn't do anything! She's the one that decided to 'accidently' walk past the dormitory!" Draco insisted. Blaise arched his eyebrow and Draco gave up the act. There was no point pretending in front of his friend. "Fine," He said with a sigh. "I asked Luna to come to our common room to do work. I did it so Pansy would get jealous. We finished our work and I kissed her-"

"Luna?"

"Yeah. Anyway, whilst we were doing that Pansy walked in and went all psycho."

His friend frowned, "Why did Pansy come past here? The girl's dormitories are on the other side of the common room."

"Exactly. Clearly she wanted to see what we were doing. She got what she wanted."

"How far have you got with Lovegood anyway?" His friend asked, abruptly changing the subject.

"Nearly second base if we weren't interrupted today. Well sort of second."


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 13

Luna had just finished transfiguration. Professor Mconagall had been teaching them cross-species switches and it was all rather technical. Luna found that she had to concentrate a lot as the results could be unpredictable when you didn't. The feeling of excitement in the classroom was enough to get her interested, making it a lot easier to focus. If only it was that easy for potions. Draco being interested in the subject was helping her to see the interesting side to it. Perhaps she _would_ get better.

Luna made her way down to dinner that evening and sat at the Ravenclaw table. Everyone was incredibly excited as the arrival of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students was scheduled for now. Luna looked over to the Gryffindor table longingly. Nobody was allowed to switch tables today, the reason being they had to look uniform. It was only for one day. She could live. A hush suddenly descended on the dining hall and Luna soon saw why. The doors to the great hall were opening and a wave of blue came gliding in. Cho whispered, "Beauxbatons." Luna nodded, she already knew that it was the Beauxbatons students. They were too... airy? To be from Durmstrang. Well she was sure Durmstrang students could be 'airy' too but they weren't likely to use that as a theme for their entrance. They were a school notorious for their teaching of the dark arts and martial magic. The students gave a final graceful bow and seated themselves. A round of applause went up and Luna didn't hesitate to cheer as well. The performance had been beautiful.

* * *

Draco clapped along with the rest of the students but was more interested in what was coming next. Durmstrang. His father had wanted to enrol him there but his mother had wanted him close to home. It was a shame his mother was so sentimental. There were so many great opportunities there. He watched as a flood of red came pouring into the great hall. At the front he saw quidditch player Viktor Krum. Draco had seen him earlier in the year, playing against Ireland in the quidditch world cup. He really was a remarkable player. Draco hoped he would get a chance to speak with him later on. What a thing to write home about!

At the end of the dinner Draco stood up with the rest of the Slytherin's to go back to their common room. A few Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students were staying with them as a reward for good behaviour. One of those students was Viktor Krum. Draco saw Luna sitting at the Ravenclaw table. She mouthed the word, 'goodnight' and turned back to face the right way round. He strode forward determinedly and reached Luna quickly. Giving her a quick kiss on the cheek he whispered, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." She whispered back. The girl was amazing at playing her part. He never would have pegged her for a good liar but he was obviously wrong in his judgement. Maybe he was losing his shrewdness. He'd have to sort that out, with some time home during the holidays. His family always kept him on his toes.

Everyone reached the common room and slumped down. A few girls from Beauxbatons and the Slytherin girls were sorting out sleeping arrangements. They finally came to a conclusion that they could all share the large beds. The boys didn't want to share. Their solution was two boys were going to sleep in the common room and the rest would sleep in the dormitories. As soon as Krum volunteered Draco did. He was getting his chance to talk to him sooner than expected. The two of them followed the other boys into the dormitories. Despite the fact they were sleeping in the common room they were keeping their things and getting ready in the dormitories.

Once they had changed Viktor and Draco made their way back to the common room. They both reclined on separate sofas. Draco was pondering how to start a conversation when Krum broke the silence. "You are Draco Malfoy?" He asked.

"Yes I am." He replied, wondering how the quidditch player knew who he was.

"Your family is very noble and old." Krum continued. "The boy... Blaise was telling me."

"It is. We are proud of our lineage." Draco internally thanked Blaise for bringing his family's history up. That alone would be enough to impress a Durmstrang student.

"Then I must ask. Why are you 'with' the Lovegood girl?" Draco tried not to show his surprise but realised the common room was dark. He didn't have to hide. His mind raced to come up with a believable explanation.

"Well... We balance each other out I guess. She's the dreamy, imaginative one and I'm the shrewd, critical one. We balance out each others strong personalities. It just works." Draco was amazed at how easily the lie tumbled from his mouth. It wasn't as if he hadn't lied before, far from it... But about him and Luna? Sure he had lied about everything about them but this was different. He actually believed what he was saying... Viktor yawned.

"But does it not bother you?" A sleepy voice asked.

"What?" Draco asked, confused.

"That her family isn't noble like yours. That she is different."

"The same logic applies. We balance each other out. It doesn't matter to me." He heard another yawn.

"Goodnight. I am quite tired from the travelling."

"Goodnight." Draco said. And though Krum fell into an easy, uninterrupted sleep, Draco lay awake for quite some time pondering the conversation he had just had.


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**We've got an OC called Yordan in this chapter; he will be appearing in future chapters :)**

Chapter 14

Luna was sat at breakfast with her friends. She was quite tired, last night she had been up for a long time after dinner explaining the history of Hogwarts to two Beauxbatons students. It wasn't as if it was only her that had stayed up though. Cho had too but she seemed wide awake, Luna wondered how she did it. Stifling a yawn she turned to the Durmstrang student next to her. "Yes?" She asked him. She hadn't caught what he was saying.

"I wanted to know if you could show me the castle one day." He said.

"But this is the castle." Luna said perplexed. "You can see it."

"No," He said, shaking his head. "I meant could you show me _around_ the castle?" Just as Luna was about to say yes someone spoke.

"Yordan," Luna looked up to see Viktor Krum. He was a famous quidditch player and he was addressing the boy sat next to her. "She has a boyfriend." Yordan's cheeks turned red.

"S-sorry." He said quickly and he stood up and left.

"Sorry about that Miss Lovegood." Viktor said with a smile.

"Oh there's nothing to be sorry about. Why did he leave?" The quidditch player cocked his head to the side with an amused smile.

"It doesn't matter. I hear you are Draco Malfoy's girlfriend?"

Luna smiled and answered, "Yes I am."

"He seems to like you very much." Luna blushed, smiling. "I just wanted to ask, how is it dating someone that is so different from you? Are there any problems? Well, there has to be but-" Luna decided to cut in as he was rambling.

"Well, some people don't like it but it's fine. At first there were rumours and gossip and even though it still seems to surprise people when we talk or do something together, I think people are starting to get used to us being together."

"So it gets easier?"

"It does." Luna smiled. "But why are you asking me this?" Viktor looked at her with his brows furrowed. He seemed to be having some kind of internal debate.

"I- uh, well there's this girl I like but she is very different from what is expected of me- from me I mean." He blushed after he spoke. Why was he embarrassed?

"If you like her you should get to know her," Luna said with a smile. "I don't think expectations really matter. If you like her then you should take a chance." The red in Viktor's cheeks went down and he gave her a grateful smile.

"Thank you Luna." He said, "Draco is lucky to have you as his partner." Luna watched as he almost ran out of the great hall, smiling to herself. She was glad she could help someone.

* * *

Draco walked down to breakfast the next morning only to be hugged suddenly by Viktor Krum. "Uh-uh Viktor? Are you okay?" He was released from the quidditch player's grip, steadying himself he asked again, "Are you okay?"

"I'm better than okay!" He said with a grin that would rival the Cheshire cat's. Draco frowned, why was he so happy? "You have a wonderful girlfriend." And with that Krum walked past him and up the stairs, leaving a confused Draco behind. He shook his head and entered the great hall, _I'll ask Luna_ , he thought, detouring to the Ravenclaw table.

"Good morning," He said, managing to reach the table before Luna and her friends got up.

"Good morning," Luna replied and she looked up at him, making his breath catch in his throat. Those silvery grey eyes still surprised him.

"We were going outside. Would you like to join us?" It was Ginny. Draco could tell the offer was genuine.

"I'd love to," He said with a smile. He offered Luna his arm and was surprised when she didn't take it. He looked at her, confused and felt even more confused when she started laughing. "What's so funny?"

"You," Luna said with a fond smile. "Being such a gent." Draco looked at her smile and reminded himself sternly that it was not genuine. How did she do it?

"I would've thought you'd be impressed." Draco said with a mock frown. He heard a snort, looking up he saw it was Cho.

"Come on lovebirds. We're going out before breakfast ends remember?" She said.

Draco laughed, "Let's go."

They left the great hall and went outside. Draco was surprised by the mixture of students. Durmstrang, Beauxbatons and Hogwarts students were all talking and getting along. "Luna?" Draco decided to ask, snapping out of his reverie.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"What did you do to make Viktor so happy?"

"We just had a chat..." Luna said with a frown, then suddenly her eyebrows raised as she remembered something. "I gave him some advice whilst we were talking."

"Well the advice made him incredibly happy." Draco said with a smile.

"I'm happy it did."


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 15

It was time for their evening meal. Luna could feel everyone's excitement in the air as she made her way down to the great hall. In fact she had been feeling it all day. Tonight was the night the names would be announced for the Triwizard Tournament. Luna had no idea who would be chosen but Draco seemed to be one hundred percent sure that Viktor would be chosen to represent Durmstrang. He seemed to have done a lot of research about the tournament; Luna wouldn't have been surprised if he was right. The favourite for Beauxbatons was Fleur Delacour, if what the Beauxbatons students staying in Ravenclaw tower were saying was anything to go by. Luna had managed to speak to her once or twice and they'd had quite a nice chat about what Beauxbatons was like. It seemed stunning; maybe she could visit sometime in the future.

Entering the great hall she heard excited chatter as she made her way to the Gryffindor table to sit with Ginny. "Who do you think is going to get chosen?" Ginny asked the second she sat down.

"Some Beauxbatons students say that Fleur Delacour will be chosen and Draco thinks that Viktor Krum will be chosen."

"What about our school?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know, I haven't really looked into the tournament this year because of all the work we've been getting this year." Luna said with a frown.

"I know! But Harry's been saying he thinks Viktor Krum will be chosen for Durmstrang too. The amount of work they've been giving us is ridiculous though. We definitely didn't get this much work last year... but then again," Here Ginny put on a high pitched voice, "'You have your OWLS next year!" Switching back to her normal voice she said, "Ugh, I swear, I'm one transfiguration homework away from a trip to St Mungo's." Luna laughed but smiled sympathetically. She knew how difficult this year was and with their extracurricular activities, (Ginny's quidditch and her own potions lessons), it wasn't any easier. The great hall suddenly silenced as Professor Dumbledore stood up.

"Tonight," He announced, "We will find out which three students will be taking part in the Triwizard Tournament." A loud cheer went up after that statement, Luna laughed and joined in. After everyone had settled once again Dumbledore spoke, "We all wish whoever will be participating the best of luck and hope that this event will bring Beauxbatons, Durmstrang and Hogwarts closer than ever before." A huge round of applause followed Dumbledore's final statement as he swept down from his position at the teachers table towards where a covered podium was. Upon reaching the podium Dumbledore pulled down the cover revealing a huge goblet with blue flames flickering over the rim. Luna knew enough about the tournament to know that this was the goblet of fire. Without hesitation the fire in the goblet shot up, red. As it settled a piece of parchment spat out of it. Professor Dumbledore held the piece of parchment between his fingers and read out. "The champion for Durmstrang is... Viktor Krum!" A thunderous round of applause followed his announcement and Viktor stood up, receiving pats on the back, handshakes and other congratulations before making his way to a room at the side. Then the second burst of red flames came and again as it settled another piece of paper was deftly caught by Professor Dumbledore. "And the champion for Beauxbatons is..."

* * *

Draco watched as Cedric Diggory entered the same side room as the other two champions. Viktor Krum (he had been right), Fleur Delacour and Cedric Diggory. Those were the three champions. Dumbledore threw his hands up and announced, "This is it. We have our three-" But whatever he was going to say was cut off by another jet of flaming red. Dumbledore turned around in confusion, his facial expression similar to everyone else in the great hall. The headmaster opened up the small piece of parchment and called out, in a marginally smaller voice, "The f-fourth Triwizard champion is... Harry Potter." Everyone turned to face the Gryffindor table in shock. The boy wonder himself looked quite confused but clearly he had planned this turn of events. He saw him be pushed forward by Hermione Granger and sneered as he stumbled towards the side room. The great hall was completely silent until Dumbledore, Madame Maxine and Igor Karkaroff left, hurrying to the side room that held the four champions of this year's Triwizard tournament. The food appeared and everyone dug in, realising that the three heads would not be back until quite some time.

After dinner, despite not wanting to he made his way down to the dungeons. He had missed a lot of sessions with Luna and his godfather wasn't pleased. Entering the classroom he saw that Luna was there and Pansy wasn't. With a sigh of relief he made his way over to where Luna was sitting. "Hi," He said with a smile.

"Hi," Luna returned, not as brightly as usual. Draco suspected it was because the excitement of the evening had worn her out.

"Today we're going to be practicing the-" But realising he didn't have the blonde's usual attention he stopped. "What's up?" Luna shook her head.

"It's nothing." She said and sat up straight. But Draco wasn't fooled; he knew that something was up. He took a deep breath and held Luna's chin between his fingers. Tilting her head towards him he asked again.

"What's wrong?" He frowned as Luna's face dropped.

"I'm worried about Harry." She said.

"Harry? Potter?" He asked incredulously. "Why? He's perfectly fine!" Luna shook her head.

"He's in the Triwizard tournament. He isn't safe." Luna said.

Draco sighed, "He clearly tricked the goblet so he could participate in the tournament."

Luna shook her head, "He wouldn't do that. He was just as shocked as everyone else." Draco shifted on the hard wooden bench uncomfortably. Pointing his wand at the wood he attempted to transfigure the surface to cushions.

* * *

Luna looked at how hard Draco was concentrating and took in the little crease between his brows and the way his shoulders tensed when he retried whichever spell he was attempting to cast. Putting her hand gently over his tense one she felt it relax. She looked up to see his piercing eyes looking directly into hers. She felt the blush spreading across her cheeks but didn't try to hide it. "What were you trying to do?" She asked with a small smile.

"I was _trying_ to make this bloody bench more comfortable." He grumbled. Luna laughed.

"Was that it?" Pulling out her own wand she said, "Here." And widened the bench as well as cushioning the surface. Draco frowned at her.

"You'll have to teach me." He grumbled but Luna could see the humour in his eyes. "Well lets get on with-" But he was cut off by a yawn. From himself. Luna laughed and gently pinched his arm.

"You'll have to stay awake."

"But I can't be bothered." Draco mumbled.

"What about a five minute rest?" Proposed Luna. Draco nodded but Luna noticed his bemused look as she curled up on the bench. Moments later she felt Draco do the same.


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 16

Draco jolted awake, eyes wide. Looking forward he saw what had woken him. Snape. He rubbed his eyes, about to ask what he needed when he realised. _Shit._ "I am glad to see you have finally woken up." His godfather said with a sneer.

"Well uncle, considering you shook me awake it shouldn't come as a surprise." The dark haired man pursed his lips.

"You don't have time to be cheeky Draco," He said. "Breakfast has already begun." Draco frowned, that meant, "You have approximately fifteen minutes to clear this up, get ready and get to your lessons on time." Draco sprang out of his seat. "Oh," His godfather said, "Do wake up the girl." And with that he swept out of the classroom. Probably to go to his office. Draco knew that his godfather would expect him to be gone by the time he got back. He didn't have much time. Fifteen minutes was nothing. Draco turned back towards the bench. He had one task he needed to get done first if he was going to get anywhere on time.

"Luna," He whispered. Sensing that she wasn't about to wake up he repeated himself and gave her little shake.

"Nngh." Was all she said. Draco wasn't about to let her go back to sleep so easily though.

"Luna," He tried again but to the same results. Realising he had wasted three precious minutes he gave up. Looking around, Draco picked up the ingredients he had set out last night and put them in the storage cupboard. Then he put the cauldron into another cupboard. He was about to grab a paper towel when he realised another minute had gone by. Cursing, he stepped over to the table and cleaned it with a scouring charm. Seeing that it had worked Draco turned back to Luna. Not wanting to waste any more time trying to wake her up Draco bent down and picked her up. She was surprisingly light, her blonde hair tickling his arm. Looking around the classroom to check he hadn't missed anything Draco quickly left.

Draco whispered the password to the Slytherin common room, thankful it was on the same floor as the classroom he had vacated two minutes before. Entering the boy's dormitory he settled Luna onto the bed. He realised he had slept in his robes and he needed to changed out of the rumpled black piece of clothing fast. Stripping down to his underwear Draco chose a pair of black trousers and pulled them on. A shuffling sound met his ears and he turned around to find Luna waking up. "Luna," he said, grabbing her attention. "You need to get to your common room quickly and change." When Luna frowned in confusion Draco quickly put on his shirt and explained that they were late whilst he buttoned it up. Quickly tying his tie, pulling on a jumper and finally his robes he looked up to see Luna looking at him with a smile. "We have to go," He said, pulling her up and explaining, "We only have six minutes."

They reached the Ravenclaw tower in two minutes by running. Luna made quick work of the riddle at the door and he pulled them both inside. It was empty, why wouldn't it be? Lessons were in four minutes. "Quickly, get dressed," He said and Luna disappeared to the girls dormitories. Draco looked away from where he had just seen Luna and shifted his eyes to the room before him. It was magnificent. Tall windows with light streaming through them, tall bookshelves and-

"I'm ready." Draco looked over to where the voice came from, surprised to see Luna already dressed. He watched as she walked over to him.

"Come on, we don't have time to walk." He said impatiently. The blonde before him smiled and said:

"Your hair." Draco frowned in confusion but quickly realised. He had been walking around with bed hair. He felt his cheeks colour with embarrassment and felt them flush even further when he saw Luna notice. She handed him a comb and he went over his hair twice.

"Is it okay?" He asked, deciding to trust her judgement.

"It's perfect." She said with a smile.

"Let's go."

* * *

Luna and Draco were both in charms. They had been running. She was fast but not fast enough to keep up with Draco's pace and he had eventually taken her hand and pulled her along. They entered the classroom, on time but out of breath. She noticed Ginny's eyes flick down to the hand that was still being held by Draco's and tried not to blush at the smirk her friend gave her. "Just on time." Professor Flitwick said, drawing her attention away from Ginny. "Quickly, take your seats." Draco let go of her hand and made his way over to where he usually sat and Luna made her way to sit between Cho and Ginny as she always did.

"Why weren't you at breakfast?" Cho whispered.

Ginny snorted and whispered back, "Isn't it obvious, who did she come in with?" Cho gasped, then looked down quickly as Professor Flitwick paused to frown her way. After he looked away she spoke.

"You were _with_ Draco?" Cho asked. Luna risked a look at her friend and quickly regretted it. Covering her face with her hand, Luna attempted to smother a laugh at Cho's wide eyes and gaping mouth. Successfully supressing it she whispered.

"I was," She said. Then quickly added, "But not like _that_."

After being given their task for the lesson everyone had to pair up with someone. Cho and Ginny quickly grabbed onto each other and gave her a meaningful look. Luna looked around to find Draco in the same predicament. Blaise had just paired up with Theodore Nott and she didn't miss the wink he gave Draco. Luna walked over to Draco and before she could ask he did.

"Let's pair up." Technically that wasn't asking but still. They made their way to the back corner of the classroom and Draco rolled up his sleeves. "Do you want to go first?" He asked. Luna shook her head, seeing that Draco wanted to go first. "Alright then." The task was to use the summoning charm. They had practiced it many times and everyone had gotten the hang of it in the last lesson. Professor Flitwick had decided that this lesson they would have to summon bigger things. People. She relaxed herself, deciding to trust Draco to not use the wrong charm. He had been the fifth person to get the hang of the charm and had a lot of practice. "Accio Luna," She heard him mumble and felt herself being pulled towards him. He caught her before she fell and he looked down at her, concerned. "Are you okay?" He asked. Luna could tell that he was genuinely concerned and smiled to reassure him.

"I'm fine."

* * *

**I did a bit of research and I know that you can't cast the summoning charm on living things. I just ignored that fact and decided to change it XD I hope you enjoyed!**


	17. Chapter 17

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**We're going to have quite a few different points of view in this chapter. The point of view changes each time there is a grey line... We're starting off with Blaise, Ginny, Draco and then Luna. :)**

Chapter 17

Blaise made his way outside at break. He had managed to ask Cho Chang to meet him with Ginny Weasley whilst they were in charms. Theodore was coming with him despite not trusting Weasley. That was his reason for coming; he wanted to keep him safe. He didn't need protecting, this talk was simply to establish where they all stood in regards to Draco's new relationship. Feeling the cold November air smacking against his face, Blaise thought back to the start of the year. He had never thought Draco would go for Lovegood; the thought had never crossed his mind. He had known that Draco was unhappy in his relationship with Pansy and she had been the obvious choice of partner for Draco. Maybe it was a good thing that he was with someone so different from him. Blaise wasn't opposed to the relationship but found it quite strange. Slytherin's and Ravenclaw's went out all the time- it was just this particular Ravenclaw that made the pairing so unusual. Shaking his head, Blaise saw a head of red hair and a head of black hair in the clearing they had arranged. It was inside the forbidden forest- but not so far in that it would be dangerous. He didn't know what was actually in the forest but he had heard rumours. They were enough to deter him from venturing in. He wasn't stupid. "What if they try and pull something?" Theo said his nose red and brows furrowed.

"We're the ones that made this meeting, not them." Blaise reminded him.

"We? I'm pretty sure it was you." He said petulantly.

"Fine then, _I_ organised the meeting. Happy?"

"Positively ecstatic."

* * *

Ginny watched as the two Slytherin's came closer. She had her wand behind her back- as did Cho. Ginny didn't trust them. Why would they want to talk about Draco and Luna? She was sure this was a trap. Cho shifted restlessly beside her. "They need to hurry up," She said in her soft voice, but Ginny could hear the hard edge of suspicion.

"We'll see if this was deliberate when they get here," Ginny said, never taking her eyes off of the two figures.

"Theodore Nott is looking at us. Scanning us." Said Cho. Ginny slipped her wand into her back pocket, knowing that Cho was doing the same. They both knew that if either of the Slytherin boys saw their wands then there would be a duel. She could sense the distrust from a mile away. They had put their wands away at exactly the right moment as Theodore had just entered the clearing, followed closely by Blaise.

"What did you want?" Ginny asked immediately. She didn't want to waste any more time. She saw the look of surprise that passed across the two boy's faces and willed herself not to speak.

"You know what we wanted. To talk about Draco and Lovegood."

" _Luna_." Cho said with a raised eyebrow.

"Luna then." Said the boy she knew to be Blaise Zabini.

"What about them?" Ginny asked.

"What do you think?" He asked.

"About what?"

"Them." He said simply.

"You want our opinion on their relationship?" She asked slowly.

"Yes." Ginny narrowed her eyes with suspicion.

"What's _your_ opinion?" She countered.

"I'll tell you that after you answer me. I asked first." He was smiling smugly. As was Theodore Nott who was stood beside him.

"Luna is happy. Draco isn't a giant dickhead towards her. She's happy so I'm happy." Ginny said with a shrug. Zabini's eyes moved to Cho.

"What about you?" He asked.

"Draco isn't an entire douche and he seems to care about Luna. Luna's happy with the relationship; I have no reason to object." Cho answered. "Your turn." Blaise seemed surprised at the forcefulness in Cho's voice. Ginny smirked internally, that was her best friend.

"I don't know." He shrugged. "Draco seems happy enough but I haven't seen them together much."

"What about you?" Ginny asked Nott. He looked startled at being addressed so suddenly but nevertheless he answered.

"I don't know. He isn't as uncomfortable as he was with Pans- OW!" He exclaimed. Ginny wasn't blind, the elbow Zabini had dug into Nott's ribs had been ridiculously obvious.

"Too late." Ginny said with a smug smile. "Draco wasn't happy with Pansy and he's happier with Luna. Why are you trying to hide it though?"

Blaise eyed them nervously, "If anybody else is listening they wouldn't be able to wait to tell everyone that Draco wasn't happy with Pansy. Before you know it Draco's parents would know about him and Luna." Ginny saw Cho narrow her eyes.

"Why don't Draco's parents know?" She asked suspiciously.

"A Malfoy. And a Lovegood? You're actually asking why his parents don't know?" He said in a condescending tone that made Ginny want to punch him. But this was news to Ginny; she had figured that his parents would know.

"Don't even think about telling them." Theodore said in a warning voice. Ginny snorted.

"As if I would! And besides, his parents wouldn't touch a letter handled by Weasley's."

"Listen I just want Luna to be happy. Don't mess this up." Cho said warningly. Ginny hadn't seen her be so threatening since second year when Marcus Flint had tried to push Luna over. Actually, she was a lot more threatening then.

"I want Draco to be happy. Don't _you_ mess this up by telling his parents. We've already had to calm Mrs Malfoy down twice because of Pansy's snitching." Blaise said with a huff.

"Agreed then?" Ginny asked, sticking her hand out. Blaise looked at it disdainfully but shook it. As did Theodore. They also shook Cho's hand and when they let go it was all pleasantries.

"Let's go back up to the castle." Cho said, inviting the two boys to join them. Ginny was pleasantly surprised to see that they agreed and they made their way up to the castle together.

* * *

Draco left the cold castle into the even colder grounds. At least this coldness was crisp and sharp rather than the echoing melancholy feel of the empty corridors in the castle. "I wonder when it's going to snow." Luna mumbled absently beside him. He smiled at her wandering train of thought. Moments ago they had been discussing potions and before that the 'Wrackspurts' she was always talking about. She had told him she had decided to take out her 'contact lens spectrespecs' for the day as the wandering dots of purple were quite distracting. Draco couldn't help but think she distracted herself more than anything else did. "Oh look." She said, sounding excited. Draco turned not expecting to see anything, thinking Luna had just seen another imaginary creature. He was surprised to see his two friends- Theo and Blaise- coming towards them with Ginny Weasley and Cho Chang. He could see Cho and Blaise smiling as they walked and heard a laugh- no _laughs_ \- and was surprised to see they had come from Ginny and Theo. They seemed like the two that would distrust each other the most!

* * *

Luna watched as her friends and Draco's made their way towards them. She was happy to see that they were getting along. Looking up at Draco she snorted at his shocked expression. That seemed to snap him out of his reverie. "I'm glad to see them getting along." She said with a smile.

"So am I." He said, putting his arm around her as they waited for their friends to notice them.


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**Here is the longest chapter yet! :)**

Chapter 18

After break they had all gone to their own lessons. In Herbology Draco thought back to what he had seen. Blaise, Theodore, Ginny and Cho had all been together, laughing and joking… _getting along_. He never would have expected to see them together and getting along but- he had. And it was all because of his relationship with Luna- well, fake relationship. Draco felt a twinge of guilt, feeling bad that he was deceiving his friends. Shaking his head he turned his attention to Professor Sprout who was drawing the wand movement for the Herbivicus charm on a blackboard that was surrounded by ivy.

At lunch he went to pick up Luna from her Care of Magical Creatures lesson. It wasn't far from the greenhouses and he reached the group of students quickly. As he was scanning the group of students he felt a hand slip into his. Luna. Her hands were familiar. He looked beside him to find her smiling up at him. Her cheeks and nose were pink from the cold, her patchwork scarf contrasting with her black robes. He smiled back and they made their way up the slight hill to the castle.

After he had eaten Draco went to sit beside Blaise. Goyle was on his other side and Theo and Crabbe were sat opposite him. Despite knowing Crabbe and Goyle since first year he didn't trust them around Luna. He knew that they would probably make unwitting remarks about 'blood traitors' and 'mudbloods'. He never really spoke about such things around Luna; it had just never come up. Besides, he knew what her opinions were if her friends were anything to go by. "What's up?" Blaise asked him.

"Nothing much. I'm still a bit pissed about not being able to get the hang of that Herbivicus- or whatever it's called- charm." Theo laughed and Draco scowled.

"Honestly mate, you act as if it's the most complicated thing you've done! It wasn't even that hard." Theo said.

"You're only saying that because you got it!" Draco retorted.

Blaise leaned to the side slightly to whisper, "Your girlfriend's pretty good at that sort of thing. Ask her." Draco thought… They had a potions session tonight. Maybe he could ask her then.

"Thanks mate." He muttered. Looking up to the Ravenclaw table Draco saw Luna finishing her food. Her eyes flicked up and caught his and she tilted her head to the side slightly. Standing up, Draco said a quick bye to his friends and went over to the Ravenclaw table where Luna was waiting. She stood up at his arrival and they made their way out of the great hall together.

Once they were out of the great hall Luna made to go outside. "Wait!" He said. She turned around, confused. "It's freezing out there; we'll just sit on the steps."

Luna nodded and said, "Good idea," With a smile that took his breath away.

"Have you heard back from your father?" Draco asked, with genuine concern.

"Yep, I got the letter after Care of Magical Creatures. His leg is healing quite nicely but the healers are keeping a close eye on it to make sure it doesn't get infected. Doxy bites have a tendency to." She said with a small frown. Her father had been exploring a Doxy burrow and had gotten bitten by a lot of them. At least he seemed to be getting better. A shuffling sound from behind him broke him out of his thoughts. He turned around to see a young boy- he had to be younger than them- who must have been a Hufflepuff if his tie was anything to go by. Just as Draco was about to tell him to clear off Luna spoke, "Hello," She said warmly. The little boy cleared his throat.

"Hi," He said shyly.

"Is there something you need?" Draco asked sharply and he saw the boy jump. He almost felt bad but he shouldn't have been interrupting his time with Luna.

"Y-yes." He said. "M-my big brother said you were good at Care of Magical Creatures?" It was more of a question than a statement. Luna smiled for the boy to carry on. "I needed help with my homework." He said pulling out a roll of parchment. He unravelled it and Draco saw what looked like a quiz titled 'Hippogriff'. So he was a third year Draco realised.

"Here, come and sit and we'll do it together okay?" Luna said kindly and Draco looked up, shocked. She was actually wasting her dinner to help some little kid with their homework?! "Draco do you want to help?" She asked with a smile and Draco immediately felt guilty for his thoughts. Sat on the step Luna looked vibrant and majestic compared to the aged stone wall behind her- Wait, why did he even care what she thought? He looked into her eyes and his own widened in realisation. He cared what Luna thought. He cared about Luna.

"N-no," He said quickly, internally cursing for stuttering. "I need to go back to my common room- I- uh forgot something." And with that he bolted inside and didn't look back.

* * *

Luna looked at the spot her boyfriend had just vacated with an amused smile. Shaking her head she said, "Let's get to work on this quiz."

After lunch Luna went to Ravenclaw tower to finish up her Herbology homework. Midway through finishing her door burst open and a distressed Ginny stormed in, with Cho quickly following, attempting to calm the redhead down. "What's wrong?" Luna asked and noticed Cho's face which was an expression of what could only be described as 'oh no'.

"What's wrong?!" Ginny thundered. "What's wrong is that the quidditch game is cancelled tonight because Peregrine Derrick is faking an arm injury so that he can get some first year to do his homework!" Peregrine Derrick was the beater for the Slytherin team. Ginny had been looking forward to the match all week as it was the last one before the quidditch pitch was off bounds because of the Triwizard Tournament. "I am going to unforgivable that dickhead's face!" She yelled in frustration as she grabbed a pillow and flung it across the room.

"Ginny, calm dow-"

"I will _not_ calm down!" She yelled at Cho. Luna made an apologetic face at Cho, hoping she understood that Ginny wasn't angry at her personally.

"Ginny," Said Luna in what she hoped was a calming voice.

"What?!" She growled.

"We'll visit Madame Pomfrey and we'll ask her to do a check on his arm. If it's a fake injury then he'll have to play. Okay?" Luna screwed her eyes shut expecting some kind of outburst but all that she heard was nothing. Silence. Tentatively she opened her eyes to see Ginny looking thoughtful and Cho looking relieved. Ginny looked between Cho and Luna.

"Let's go."

After the quidditch match Luna made her way to the Gryffindor common room. Ginny had invited her and Cho to the victory party because, "The game would never have happened without you guys." Peregrine Derrick's injury had been proved false and the game had been put on again despite Madame Hooch not being happy about the last minute arrangements. The party was only going to be an hour because Lunch was at seven.

Entering the common room Luna saw that it was already quite full. She squeezed in and tried to look for Ginny through the crowd of people. "Hi," Came a disoriented voice from beside her. She looked up to see Yordan stumbling slightly as the crowd shifted. Luna could see flashes coming up from inside the crowd and smiled at the thought of Colin's determination. He was quite small but still navigated through crowds to get the best pictures for the after match assemblies. She was startled out of her thoughts by Yordan's hand roughly grabbing her arm. He seemed to have lost his balance and had stumbled closer to her. She could smell the Fire Whisky on his breath and decided to get him out of the crowd before he stumbled and got trampled on. She found his other hand and pushed through the crowd, pulling him behind her. She finally broke out of the throng and with a final pull Yordan stumbled out too. She laughed as he bumped into her and tried to set him upright, no easy task considering the crowd just behind them and Yordan's own body weight. Luna wasn't exactly 'strong'. "Luna," She heard him groan.

"What's wrong?" She asked, hoping she hadn't hurt him when she had pulled him through the crowd. Yordan looked down into Luna's eyes and she saw a hazy sort of recognition form.

"Luna," He groaned again and dipped his head, capturing her lips. Her eyes instinctively closed but quickly opened. She slid quickly to the side, breaking out of Yordan's embrace before it became too strong. She was confused and tried to think but the noisiness of the party wouldn't let her. But even the corridor wasn't appealing. The thought of standing out there, alone and cold with _only_ the realisation of what had just happened didn't sound great to Luna. She looked back at Yordan whose eyes were wide. He looked up and she could see he had realised what he had done, even around the haze of alcohol. She didn't hear him but she saw his mouth form the word 'sorry' before he was swallowed by the press of people again.

"Luna!" She heard a voice call. She spun around startled, but it was only Ginny. She gave her best friend a hug.

"Congratulations." She said with a laugh. She was glad to see her friend laughing again after how upset she had been earlier.

"WE WON!" Came a shout from the other side of the room and everybody cheered, including Luna. She was glad to take her mind off of what happened only moments ago.

"Let's go find Cho!" Ginny shouted but Luna only just heard her amongst the cheers. She nodded and they set off.

After the party had ended Luna made her way downstairs with everyone else. She wouldn't mention the party or quidditch at dinner or during the potions lesson- she knew it would only upset Draco. His team had lost after all. But at dinner she saw no sign of Draco. Oh well, they had a potions lesson after dinner anyway.

Luna made her way down to the dungeons, running her hand along the old stone walls. She hadn't seen Draco since lunch and even though that wasn't a long time ago it certainly felt like it. Entering the classroom she saw Lucian Bole and Pansy Parkinson were already there. She hadn't seen them in a session in a while. Luna smiled their way but only received a scowl and a confused looking frown in return. Sitting in her seat she waited for Draco. She didn't have to wait long and they got straight to work. Draco telling her the instructions for the Girding potion. She marvelled as the potion turned a beautiful turquoise. She had made that happen! She added the doxy eggs and dragonfly thoraxes without needing to be told twice by Draco. She was getting the hang of the subject at last!

They finally finished and Luna bottled it up. Turning around to ask Draco where to put the bottle she found he had already left. Luna decided to set it on Professor Snape's desk and packed up her things. Draco had already cleaned the desk and put the ingredients away so she left quickly.

Luna awoke the next day with a smile. She had breakfast then Charms, Transfiguration, Care of Magical Creatures, Astronomy and then Potions. She was excited to see if she would do well in Potions today. Yesterday she had done quite well. Climbing out of bed she got ready quickly and made her way downstairs.

At breakfast Ginny sat with her and Cho and they had fun recounting the match. Harry's capture of the snitch had by far been the highlight of the match and Luna couldn't wait to see it replayed at the after match assembly. At that thought Luna looked up to the Slytherin table to find Draco but he wasn't there. She frowned, perhaps that had been why he had left the tutoring session so early. Maybe he was ill. She would have to visit him sometime today.

* * *

**AN: The Herbivicus charm is a charm in Herbology that is used to rapidly increase the growth of a plant and can also be used to defeat certain creatures.**

**Doxies live underground so I said they live in burrows :)**

**Peregrine Derrick was an actual Slytherin beater till 1995. That was the year the second Triwizard Tournament task took place so he would have been beater before the first Triwizard Tournament task :)**

**I hope you enjoyed!**


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 19

Blaise jogged down to the common room at break. He needed to get his assignment from his room and he needed to check on Draco. His best friend had been acting weird since yesterday but he wouldn't tell him what was up.

Whispering the password, Blaise entered the Slytherin common room. He made his way straight to the boy's dormitory, he only had ten minutes.

"Hey," He said when he entered. He went over to the trunk at the end of his bed and began rifling through it, hoping to find the piece of parchment on time.

"Hi," Came a muffled voice. Blaise looked over to where the voice had come from, not entirely surprised to see Draco face down on his bed. He didn't look as if he had moved from there all morning judging by the sheets that were tangled in his legs. If he had gone down for a late breakfast then a house elf would have cleaned his bed.

"How's life?" Blaise asked with a laugh.

"Confusing and a bit shit, what about you?" His best friend said, turning around and kicking his legs free of his sheets so he could sit up slightly.

"By the looks of it I'm doing a lot better," Blaise said with a smirk, "What's up?" He regretted the question when Draco groaned and threw himself back into a laying positon, this time on his side facing away from him. He sighed and walked over to the four poster that held the blonde. He sat down and made himself comfortable. "Seriously, what's up? Have you even gotten out of bed today?" From where he was sitting Blaise could see Draco make a pained face.

"Nothing's wrong- and I got out of bed to brush my teeth." Blaise raised an eyebrow despite the fact no one was there to see it. Just Draco. And Draco was facing the opposite way.

"Listen, you can tell me. What's up? And don't even say nothing otherwise I'll go straight down to Snape's office and steal some Veritaserum. I'm not joking."

"I know you're not, which makes me wonder just how stupid you are. He'd string you up and give you detention with Filch." Blaise snorted and Draco continued, "And what's up is Luna."

"What, did you have an argument or something?" Blaise asked with a frown. Draco rolled over, nearly tipping Blaise off the bed.

"No." Blaise tried to keep his face neutral; it wouldn't do to show any expression. Draco might shut off completely if he did.

"Then what?" He asked carefully.

The blonde sighed and said, "I care about her." Then he groaned and covered his face with his hands. Blaise was just confused.

"Why wouldn't you care abou-?"

"Because our relationship is fake." Blaise looked at his friend. He wasn't sure he had heard correctly amidst his internal grumbling about being cut off.

"Fake?" Was all he could say. Draco nodded, his hands still covering his face. "I-I don't understand. How?" Blaise didn't know what it was about what he said but Draco suddenly sat up.

"Remember last year when Pansy kept trying to make me jealous?" Blaise nodded. Then it hit him.

"Ooooh. So you went out with Luna to make her jealous?"

"Yeah," Draco said resignedly.

"Wait, did Luna-"

"Yep. She knows. And I've gone and started to actually like her." He hit his head against the headboard and sighed. "I'm so dumb." Blaise's mind was whirring; they had been lying this entire time? Both of them?

"Y-you guys were so convincing. I wouldn't have thought Luna would've been able to lie that well." Blaise said in surprise.

"Neither did I. And don't call her Luna."

"Why not?"

" _Because_ ," Draco said, "You wouldn't have been on a first name friendship if it wasn't for all these lies. You're making me feel guilty." Blaise was surprised at the admission, though it had been made in a monotone voice. Draco probably didn't want to put any feeling behind it. The confession was enough for Blaise to understand how serious this was for Draco.

"Sorry man, but why don't you just tell her?" Draco snorted.

"Really?" He said. "It'll just ruin the entire thing and I'm not about to let Pansy get all smug and think that she's won this." Blaise laughed at his friend's stubbornness but quickly turned serious.

"Listen, I've got to get to lesson. You coming or not?" Draco shook his head and Blaise got up and started looking through his stuff for his homework again. He finally found it and said, "I'm off then."

"See you."

"Bye."

Out of the common room Blaise made his way down the corridor only to be stopped by someone. Looking up, he was surprised to find Luna. She looked concerned. "What's up?" He asked.

"Can you let me into the common room, I want to see Draco." She said with a smile. Blaise thought back to his friend's state and was about to say no when he realised that the two of them needed to talk.

"Of course." He said.

* * *

Draco sat up as he heard the sound of footsteps coming towards his dormitory. Why was Blaise back so quickly? He'd probably forgotten a quill or something. Closing his eyes again, Draco leant back, only to sit straight back up when he heard a soft voice say, "Draco?" What was Luna doing here?!

"Luna," He said warily, trying not to give away any sort of true feelings he had for her. He tried not to react when she smiled at him.

"Are you okay?" She asked, "I thought you might be ill."

"No I'm fine." Draco said with a smile, he couldn't help himself. She made him feel so at ease.

"Then why didn't you come down to breakfast?" She asked, walking over to where he was laying. She sat on the bed and crossed her legs, making herself quite at home.

"I woke up late." He said nervously. Luna laughed, it was a gentle un-mocking one and Draco couldn't help but be mesmerised by it.

"That doesn't mean you had to not come to any of your lessons." She said, not angrily.

"That's true." He said and they both sat in silence. _Should I tell her?_ He wondered. It was so difficult to decide. Both ways would end negatively for him; it was unlikely that she would return his feelings.

"What's wrong?" Luna asked, Draco jumped, confused as to how she had noticed his thoughts. She seemed to understand his thoughts as she pointed to her eyes. "I have the spectrespecs contacts in," She said with a smile, "I can see all the Wrackspurts buzzing around your head." Draco laughed for the first time that day and it dawned on him that telling her would be the right thing to do.

Quickly turning serious he took a deep breath and said, "I like you." That was it. There was no going back now. Luna didn't say anything, she only frowned slightly. "In- you know, _that way_." He said, hoping he wasn't making the situation any worse.

"I like you too." She finally said with a smile.

"Y-you do?" He asked, shocked.

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?" Draco couldn't help the grin that spread across his face and he decided to take a chance- though it wasn't really chancy anymore- and leaned forward to kiss her.


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 20

Draco made his way down to the after match assembly with a smile. Blaise had come up again at lunch and Draco had told him what had happened. Theo had joined them later and was surprised at first but quickly got over it to congratulate his best friend. He was surprised at how quickly his friends had accepted his deceit.

"It was what you needed to do." Blaise said.

"Just don't do it again." Theo added.

Draco sat at the Slytherin table and watched as Luna took her seat at the Gryffindor table. Everyone quickly settled down and he turned his attention to the front where Dumbledore was stood about to start his speech. Draco wasn't really looking forward to the assembly, Slytherin had lost the match but it was all about 'school spirit'. Draco thought the idea was stupid. Why have the houses and have competitions- which were made to be _won_ \- and then insist on 'unity'. If they cared about unity at all then they wouldn't have made the bloody houses. Dumbledore had begun making his speech, just like he did every assembly. When he was done Draco sighed in relief. The old man could be so tedious. Next came the replays of the most important parts of the match and he cheered with everyone else whenever there was a Slytherin victory. He knew they hadn't won the match overall but they had done well. The pictures came up next- people in the stands, pictures of the players, after parties, that sort of stuff. Draco watched as the first picture came up. It was Potter reaching out; his fingers were just about to close on the snitch. He snorted; of _course_ they were going to show the golden boy first.

Now they were onto the pictures of the after party. He had seen Luna in the back of one picture but otherwise didn't know anybody in the pictures- well maybe Cho and Ginny but he didn't know if they counted just yet. The next picture came up; it was of Luna- what?! She was kissing that Yordan from Durmstrang. Draco couldn't believe what he was seeing but all the same stopped himself from looking at the Gryffindor table. Seeing the look of guilt on her face would only prove what she had done.

* * *

Cho watched open mouthed as the picture of Luna switched to another one. She couldn't have kissed him. Luna wouldn't do that. "Wasn't there a picture of her and that Malfoy last year?" She heard. It was a whisper but she heard and from the way Ginny had tensed she had heard it too.

"Yeah, she gets around fast doesn't she?" There was a chuckle and Cho saw from the corner of her eye, Ginny lunging towards the two girls that had been speaking. Before she could respond Harry did and he pulled her back before any real commotion took place. Ginny shot the two girls a murderous look and shook off Harry's arm. Cho almost wished Ginny had done something but knew that she would've gotten into trouble. The pictures had finished and Cho looked up to see Draco walking out of the great hall with Luna close behind. Wait. When had Luna gotten up?

"Luna couldn't have done that." Cho said once everyone had started eating.

"I know," Ginny said, her voice strained. Cho could tell she was still angry. "Who took those pictures?" She asked.

"Colin," Cho said, "He takes the pictures."

"We need to talk to him. He should've seen something."

"After assembly. Okay?" Cho asked, hoping Ginny could be patient.

"After assembly."

* * *

Luna called after Draco. "Wait! Draco." She was getting tired of chasing him up the steps and had nearly lost him a few times because of the changing. Draco spun around; it was the first time he had acknowledged her in all that time.

"What?" He snarled, tapping his foot impatiently. Luna was about to speak and explain what had happened when Draco spoke again. "You want to tell me that this was all a mistake? That I'm _mistaken?_ I told you how I felt and you went and did _that?!_ Don't even try to defend yourself. The evidence was right there. Pansy was right, you are a _whore_." Luna stood frozen in place, shocked by the hatred she could feel emanating from him with every word he spat out. "We're done." He said and Luna only registered he had gone when her two friends shook her and pulled her up the stairs to Ravenclaw Tower.

* * *

Viktor had grabbed Yordan the moment the assembly had ended. He had told Yordan earlier in the year that Luna had a boyfriend. What did he think he was doing?! "What happened?" Was all he said.

Yordan looked down at his shoes and said, "I was drunk."

"I didn't ask _why_ I asked what." Viktor growled.

"I- I can't remember." Yordan said in a small voice.

"You have to remember something." Viktor said in a suspicious tone. Yordan sighed and rubbed his eyes. The dejected look on his face almost made Viktor feel sorry for him. Almost.

"She pushed me away." Yordan said simply. "That's all I remember really."

"Are you sure?" Viktor asked slowly.

"Yes, I'm sure." Viktor needed to talk to Luna and see what she remembered. He hoped it was something more substantial than what Yordan had told him. The fact that Luna pushed him away was important but it wasn't reliable since it came from the guy that was expected to defend her. From what Viktor knew of Luna he knew that she wouldn't do anything like that. He hoped that Draco understood that too.


	21. Chapter 21

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 21

Ginny left Cho with Luna in the Ravenclaw tower and went to find Colin. They needed to talk. The little idiot had made all this happen. Ginny took a deep breath to calm herself. It wouldn't do to scare Colin if she wanted information from him. She knew that he'd be in Gryffindor tower; if he wasn't there then she'd look on the astronomy tower. Everyone talked about him taking pictures on a night, many speculating that one day he would fall to his death. Hopefully he hadn't fallen today or she'd be out of evidence for Luna.

Entering the Gryffindor common room, Ginny found it quiet save from a few people who were up and studying. Right at the back of the room was Colin. She made her way to him quickly and asked, "The party? Luna? Did you see anything?" He looked up confused but his eyes widened when he saw it was Ginny. "Colin, _hurry_ and answer me, I want to get to bed soon."

Colin simply shook his head and muttered, "I didn't see anything. I was j-just trying out a photography technique that I read about. Y-you just take random pictures." Ginny wasn't interested in photography theories and knew that Colin didn't know anything more. She needed to get back to Ravenclaw tower.

* * *

The next day Viktor made his way to the grounds of Hogwarts. He was sure he would find Luna outside. He walked along the banks of the river and gasped as he nearly tripped over a hunched figure. It was Luna. Viktor was surprised to see her looking so… dull. Usually she was all smiles and made you feel welcome and happy. "What's up?" He asked rather stupidly. Luna sighed and looked up at him.

"Hi," she said with a weak smile. "Me and Draco broke up." She said and she squeezed her eyes shut and tilted her head back. If anyone else saw her they'd think that she was trying to catch some sun except for the fact that the winter sun wasn't strong at all. Viktor knew she was upset and didn't want to push her. He didn't think _he'd_ be able to handle it if she didn't return to her usual self soon.

* * *

Theodore made his way down to the Slytherin dungeon with Blaise. They were going to Hogsmeade and they hadn't seen any sign of Draco at breakfast. "Do you think he's alright?" Blaise asked. Theodore snorted.

"Of course he's not okay, he's only just found out his girlfriend was with another guy!" Blaise groaned.

"If he's all depressed I'm not going to know what to do."

"You better not shrink back; I don't know what to do either when he's like that!"

They entered the dormitory to find Draco getting out of bed looking quite groggy. "Hi," Theodore said nervously.

"Hi," Came the reply in a croaky voice. "What are you doing here? Hogsmeade is soon."

"Yeah, we were wondering if you wanted to come." Blaise said from beside Theodore.

"I don't want to." Draco said simply.

"But-"

"No." Draco said more firmly this time. Theodore tried not to be stung at being cut off but couldn't help but frown when Draco said, "I want to be alone." Now they were getting kicked out. He turned around and walked out quickly, hearing Blaise close behind. They needed to sort this out. And soon.

* * *

Luna had been sitting outside since breakfast. She was just thinking, she hadn't been listening to her own thoughts for a while and it was nice to be outside, listening to the chilly wind whistling through the trees whilst being cosy in a woolly scarf and jumper. She hadn't done this since the start of the year and it felt good to be alone again. The downside was that her thoughts kept wandering back to Draco… Maybe she should sort through her own thoughts. Have some sort of order instead of just yearning over one thing. Viktor had spoken to her earlier and she hadn't realised how upset she was about Draco until she'd had to say the words out loud. "Luna," Luna jumped but quickly relaxed, recognising Cho's voice.

"Hi," She said with a smile, turning around to find Ginny stood with her black haired friend.

"It's a Hogsmeade weekend; we're going in a little bit. Come on." Cho said with a smile.

Luna sighed, "I think I'll just get some revision for Transfiguration done today, I don't really feel like going out." She smiled at the end of her sentence but was only met with frowns.

"Sorry Luna but you've been doing work all week and you need a rest. No isn't an answer." Cho said sternly. Luna shrugged and smiled. There was no use fighting against her friends when their minds were made up.

She was sat in The Three Broomsticks now with a butterbeer in hand. "Luna, we know this is probably still a sensitive topic for you but we want to know what happened with Yordan at the party." Ginny was looking at her with an outwardly stern look but Luna could tell she wanted to know what happened.

She sighed, (she seemed to be doing that a lot) and told them, "I was trying to find you when I saw Yordan. He was quite drunk so I pulled him out of the crowd so he didn't get crushed," She let out a light laugh but quickly turned serious. "When I got him out he kissed me. I pulled away though."

"Bastard." Ginny muttered. Cho nodded in agreement.

"No no," Luna said quickly, "He was really drunk and when he realised what he did he said sorry." Cho let her head fall back and groaned.

"What are we going to do?" Luna didn't understand. She just shrugged and drank some butterbeer.


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**The points of view for the chapter are (in order): Pansy, Draco, Cho and Blaise.**

Chapter 22

Pansy made her way into the great hall with a smile on her face. Her friends had told her that they had overheard Draco telling Luna that _she_ was right. That Luna was a whore. The thought made her smile grow to a grin but she hastily schooled her face into a mask of concern. Draco had to know that she cared about his feelings. Pansy knew that she'd have to wait a little bit, but not so long that Draco would get over the sting of what Luna had done. Looking over to the Slytherin table Pansy saw exactly what she wanted to see. He was sitting alone. Crabbe and Goyle were on the opposite side of the table and the seat next to Draco was empty. She knew what she was going to do. She had rehearsed it in her head last night. But no matter how many internal rehearsals she did, it all came down to Draco's reaction. Would he respond in the way she wanted to or not? Well, there was only one way to find out. Pansy took determined strides up to the Slytherin table and sat herself in the seat next to Draco. She was just on time. They were slightly early so the great hall wasn't full enough that nobody would notice what she was going to do, yet there were enough people in the hall and people entering that she would be seen and have an impact. For one thing Pansy knew she was directly in Luna Lovegood's line of sight. She sniffed contemptuously but composed herself as a weary looking Draco turned around to face her. _Poor baby._ She ran her fingers through his hair. He needed the comfort. He looked mildly surprised, with a little frown on his face. He was so cute. However, despite his surprise he didn't seem to be objecting to what she was doing. It was now or never. Pansy leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

* * *

Draco froze momentarily. What on earth did she think she was doing?! He was about to push her off when, _she'll see. Think about what she did to you._ Draco closed his eyes and responded enthusiastically, feeling Pansy's grip in his hair grow tighter. Her lips were slippery; it was that lip gloss she wore. It always left a taste of plastic in his mouth. It was artificial. She finally released him and he gently ran his fingers over his mouth, removing any lip gloss that had been deposited on him. He leaned back casually but his eyes quickly flicked up to find _her_. She wasn't even looking his way! As if she hadn't seen! Draco turned back to his breakfast miserably, trying not to snap at Pansy's intrusive touches.

* * *

It was their charms lesson and it was awkward. Very awkward. Cho remembered how the last few were spent joking around with Blaise and Theo. Now all four of them seemed to be avoiding each other at every possible moment. It would have hurt, but instead it just made her slightly angry. Why should their friendship depend on Luna and Draco's relationship? Admittedly that was what had made the friendship in the first place but still! The stupid misunderstanding between Luna and Draco was causing problems for everyone. She had to find a faster way of getting this sorted.

It was dinner now and Cho had just finished her food. Luna seemed to be her usual self again but there was something that wasn't quite right. She made a mental note to ask Ginny if she knew what was up later. Suddenly somebody caught her eye. It was Blaise. He was making his way out of the great hall but nobody else was with him… perhaps he was taking an early night. Whatever it was Cho had just had an idea. She wasn't sure it would work but she had to try. "Guys I think I'm going to take an early night." Cho said hurriedly as she watched Blaise disappear from the doorway of the great hall.

"Okay, goodnight." Ginny said with a smile. "We'll be coming up in a bit anyway to finish some work off." Cho was barely paying attention to the words that came out of her redheaded friend's mouth as she waved and quickly made her way out of the great hall. _Dungeons._ He had to be going down into the dungeons. She started to run, her light feet making no noise on the stone of the corridor.

Cho had the Slytherin dungeon in her sight but there was no Blaise. Where was he? Perhaps he had taken another route. There was no way he could have made it to the Slytherin common room so quickly. She stopped suddenly. What was that noise?... Footsteps! Cho quickly ran into the small corridor beside her and held her breath. It could be Blaise but it could also be Professor Snape. Everyone knew that Professor Snape didn't take kindly to students loitering in the dungeons after dinner. It was like the after curfew ban of walking around the school at night except this one was unofficial. It would still result in a detention though. Cho pressed herself closer to the cold stone wall as the footsteps came nearer and nearer. She let out a sigh of relief when it was only Blaise who passed by but quickly sprang into action a moment later, grabbing him and pulling him into the small empty corridor. Within seconds he had her pinned against the wall, his wand at her throat. "Fucking hell," He hissed but Cho could see that he was definitely more relaxed than he had just been, (but still not relaxed enough to let go of her). "What are you doing here?" He whispered, his eyes were darting around as if expecting some kind of trap… or his head of house.

"I can't explain it all here, we might get caught." She replied in the same hushed tone.

"Well I'm not about to invite you into the common room."

Cho frowned, "Why not?"

Blaise raised an eyebrow, "First of all, I am not under any obligation to invite you in and second of all your best friend has cheated on my best friend. Why on earth would I invite you in and up- annoy him?" So Draco was upset about the entire thing?

"I don't think it would annoy him." Cho said innocently. "He seems to have moved on actually, if him sucking face with Pansy Parkinson at breakfast is any indication." She said it in a light tone but she knew that the boy who still had her pinned against the wall could feel the slight edge to her words.

He released her with a sigh and said, "You can tell me everything here. Just be quick about it." Cho frowned. She thought she had gotten her point across but clearly she was mistaken.

"Fine," She grumbled, giving in. She was going to have to abbreviate this. A lot. "Basically-" But Cho was cut off by the sound of footsteps.

Blaise bravely took a quick look at the main corridor and hissed, "Snape." Oh no.

"Meet me in the clearing in the forbidden forest." She was about to run off when she quickly added, "After the first tournament task is done. Bring Theo. For Luna and Draco." And with that Cho took off down the small corridor and didn't stop running until she had gotten out of the dungeons. Now she had the task of convincing Ginny- it wouldn't have been difficult if not for the fact that Cho knew how angry Ginny was at Blaise and Theo.

Entering Ravenclaw tower Cho breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't been caught. "Alright, goodnight!" She heard a familiar voice call. Ginny. Her voice was coming from the girl's dormitory. She jogged quickly to the other end of the common room only to bump into her redheaded best friend. "Oi wa- oh it's just you," Ginny said with a laugh. "I thought you were going to have an early night, me and Luna have finished our work, I was just going."

Cho took a deep breath and said quickly, "I lied. I went to see Blaise."

"Wait wha-" She said, looking very confused.

"Just listen for a second Ginny." She made to say something but Cho spoke before she did. "Please? If he can convince Theo to come then we'll be going to meet each other after the first tournament task. It's to sort out this whole Draco and Luna thing. I need you to come with me."

"Why should I-" Ginny began but Cho cut her off.

"For Luna. I get that you're angry at Draco for breakfast and at Blaise and Theo for acting how they are but this is for Luna. You know as well as I do that she's still not over him."

"Even if we talk there's no guarantee that they're going to get back together. He seemed perfectly content with snogging Pansy Parkinson."

"It would clear Luna's name. She's not a whore but you've seen the looks she gets now. Before they were just because she was… eccentric but know they're for a whole other reason. Do you know that Andrew Kirke keeps trying to get her to sleep with him?" Ginny's eyes widened. Clearly she hadn't known about Kirke's vile attitude towards Luna.

"Let me get my hands on-"

"You can do that when you get back but promise me you'll come with me."

"I promise." And with that Ginny rushed out of the common room. Probably to find Kirke. Cho wasn't about to stop her, he deserved a beating. She actually hoped that Ginny would find him.

* * *

Blaise was attempting to look for Theo. He had managed to get away with being in the small corridor with the excuse of tying his shoelaces and quickly went into his common room, not wanting to push his luck any further- _There_ he was! Blaise made his way over to the doorway of the boy's dormitory where Theo was stood. Why was he stood there? As he got closer he noticed the disgusted look on his friend's face. "What's wrong?" Blaise whispered. He didn't know why he'd whispered but he just knew to.

"I was trying to talk to Draco but he completely cut me off for," Theo paused and shuddered. " _That._ " Blaise looked through the door and saw what Theo was referring to. Draco was there, with Pansy and they were kissing like there was no tomorrow. He felt ill taking in the spectacle and turned away before it turned any more stomach turning than it already was.

"Um, Theo?" Blaise asked.

"Yeah?" His friend answered, turning away from Pansy and Draco with a pinched expression.

"I want to sort out this thing between Luna and Draco." When he saw Theo's sceptical look he quickly added. "If there's no evidence to support Luna then we'll leave it. Seriously, wouldn't you take any chance to be able to walk into your dormitory without seeing that? Or at least _talking to your friend?_ " Theo frowned but a smile quickly grew on his face and he asked.

"How?"

* * *

**Andrew Kirke was an actual student at Hogwarts. He was in Gryffindor and was a beater on the quidditch team :)**

**Oh I'm also thinking of maybe developing a romance between Blaise and Cho. I'm not entirely sure though…**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 23

After lunch the next day everyone gathered in the arena that had been specially built for the Triwizard tournament so that they could watch the first task. Blaise and Theo had managed to keep track of Ginny and Cho through the crowds and had now found seats near them. Close enough that they could see each other but distant enough that they didn't rouse any suspicion. Before him, Blaise saw a rocky kind of terrain and had spotted a golden egg. His (educated) guess was that the champions had to retrieve the egg. Blaise sighed and retreated into his thoughts, the excited hum of the arena not managing to distract him from his worry about Draco. He had refused to come to the Triwizard Tournament with them _._ An event Blaise, Theo and Draco were all passionate about. It wasn't a passion quite like quidditch where they would attend every game but it was more a respect and honour that they all felt for the tournament and the fact that they were able to attend. At least that had been the case when they'd first started off the year with the news. All three of them had spent the evening speculating about the tasks, where they'd be set and- when they'd found out about the arena being built- how they could get the best view. Now Draco was sat somewhere in the arena with _Pansy_. He was acting like a love-struck fool but Blaise knew better. At least he had _thought_ he knew better... now he wasn't really sure. Last year and at the start of this year, Draco had made it clear that he didn't actually like Pansy, that he was only with her for appearances sake and that it made his parents happy that he was associating with appropriate people. After finding out about Luna cheating on him Draco had gone in the opposite direction and was with Pansy at every opportunity he had. Blaise looked towards where he could see Ginny and Cho and wondered what was so important to them that Cho had decided to scare him half to death in the middle of the night- okay that was a slight exaggeration but either way, everyone knew that the dungeons weren't to be loitered in on an evening. It must have been important for Cho to have risked a detention… He knew that it must be some kind of plan to get Draco and Luna together but didn't know how they planned on fixing the problem- Luna had cheated on Draco and Draco wasn't exactly the forgiving type. He thought about it a little more but quickly gave up. He'd have to wait until the first task was finished to find out what the two girls had planned.

* * *

Cho and Ginny didn't have to wait long for Blaise and Theo to show up. They had wanted to go back to the castle to celebrate the completion of the first task but right now Luna was more important. The sky was already darkening; it was only half past four but it looked like it should have been seven. Perhaps the forbidden forest hadn't been such a good idea Cho thought, trying not to look out into the shadows of the trees, afraid of what she might see. She looked up into the expectant faces of Theo and Blaise. "Well?" Blaise asked.

"Luna didn't cheat on Draco." Ginny said simply. Blaise snorted and Cho glared at him, partly to convey her annoyance and partly as an excuse to not have to keep flicking her eyes between the two boys. She didn't want to accidently look in the gap in the trees behind them.

"What?" Blaise said defensively. "I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to see that she clearly did." Cho looked to her best friend; after the redhead nodded she turned back to Blaise.

"Yordan was drunk. He kissed Luna. Luna pushed him away but Colin must have gotten a picture. Luna isn't the type to cheat; you know that as well as I do." She said rather flippantly, only putting emphasis on the last words she spoke. It had the desired effect, making everyone look slightly surprised when they realised what she had actually said. Cho looked at Theo who hadn't spoken yet but he just seemed to be thinking, probably looking anything that could be a lie. She wasn't offended, it was understandable, she'd probably do the same for Luna.

"I don't believe you." Blaise said, quite petulantly- the look that Theo sent his best friend's way was a clear indicator he disagreed.

"Why not?" Cho asked, trying to hide her smirk. If Blaise knew that she thought she had the upper hand he wouldn't be happy. He seemed to like being right.

"Because there isn't anyone that can back up your story. Only Luna and of course she'd cover for herself." Blaise said with a snort.

"Yordan." She said simply, the grin being even harder to hide at his expression of sudden realisation.

"I'll talk to Yordan tomorrow then. We'll have to see if you're telling the truth." Blaise said with a satisfied smirk. Cho was surprised at how well he'd hidden his surprise when he spoke.

"Is this it then?" Theo asked. "The meeting is over?"

Cho nodded, "Find a way to let at least one of us," She gestured towards Ginny and herself, "Know when you've talked to Yordan. We'll meet again after that."

* * *

Filius was midway through marking second year charms assessments when Draco Malfoy came in. "You asked for me sir?" He asked. Filius could sense the underlying impatience in the boy's tone and leaned forward and motioned for him to sit at the chair in front of his desk. Once he was seated he began.

"Well Mr Malfoy I've called you to discuss your falling grades in my lesson. You don't cause many disruptions but recently I have noticed you becoming distracted by Miss Parkinson. You were improving when you partnered up with Miss Lovegood in lessons, improving _a lot_. However since then your grades have dropped. I was thinking you would benefit if I assigned you a tutor, do you agree?" Draco nodded but he noticed the barely concealed eye roll that showed the boy didn't really care and simply wanted to get out of the classroom. Filius was about to start speaking again when Luna Lovegood entered the classroom. He smiled at the bright young witch and motioned for her to sit.

"You called for me sir?" She asked with a smile.

"Yes I did, I was just talking to Mr Malfoy about how I feel he would benefit from a tutor and he agrees with me. The reason I called you was because I want you to be Mr Malfoy's tutor." When nobody spoke Filius awkwardly dismissed them. They worked brilliantly together in class, he had no doubt that with Miss Lovegood guiding him, Mr Malfoy would improve in charms greatly.


	24. Chapter 24

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**So a little recap for the last chapter is that:**

**Luna is now Draco's tutor in charms.**

**Theodore, Ginny, Cho and Blaise meet up and Blaise decides to speak with Yordan to find out what happened**

**Draco is distancing himself from his friends to be with Pansy.**

Chapter 24

Blaise wandered through the grounds the next day, looking for Yordan. He had to get his side of things before believing anything Cho and Ginny said. He had already wasted valuable time looking near the greenhouses; Yordan hadn't been there or near the forbidden forest. Blaise was making his way back up to the school building when he spotted two figures by the lake. Nobody had been there before! He walked towards the lake. They were Durmstrang students but was either one of them Yordan?

Blaise was now running towards the pair, after walking a little bit he could see who they were. Yordan and another Durmstrang student called Andon. Andon turned around and spotted him running towards them and pulled his wand out, Blaise quickly put his hands up. Durmstrang students were skilled in martial magic and Blaise didn't want to find out what their curriculum included like this. Blaise slowed down and Andon visibly relaxed, putting his wand back in his pocket but still keeping his hand hovering over it. When he finally reached them Blaise bent over with his hands on his knees, he hadn't done much running and from that distance he was bound to be out of breath. _I need to get fit,_ he thought as he straightened up again, still slightly out of breath. The two other students were looking at him with inquisitive expressions, wanting to know what he had exerted himself for. "I need to talk to you Yordan," Said Blaise and with a quick look at Andon he added, "Privately." Yordan nodded and waved a goodbye to Andon as they walked further away from the lake.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Yordan asked. He was curious.

"Luna." Blaise said simply. At Yordan's stricken expression he hastened to add, "All I want to know is what happened. That's all." He watched as Yordan closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I was drunk. All I remember is Luna pulling me out of the crowd and I kissed her. She pushed me away. That's it." Yordan said the words without emotion and looked like he was waiting for Blaise's response.

"Is that all you remember?" Blaise asked. He had hoped for something more detailed.

"Yes, I don't remember anything else." And with that he walked away from Blaise, leaving him confused as to what his next steps should be.

* * *

Luna made her way upstairs for her first tutoring session with Draco. She hadn't spoken to him for what she should have prepared for the session but she did have little examples of his strengths and weaknesses from working with him in charms lessons- she hoped that would be enough for the first session and then they could figure out what the most important things Draco needed to work on were.

She reached the classroom just as professor Flitwick was finishing marking the last paper on the pile in front of him. He looked up and gave her a smile, "Good luck with your tutoring session although I'm sure it will go swimmingly. You and Mr Malfoy work brilliantly together." Luna smiled at her head of house but felt a little bit of sadness at his words. Her and Draco didn't work together anymore and she didn't know what he was going to be like when he walked through the door. He had changed quite a bit; Luna had noticed that he was with Pansy a lot more. She was quite happy that he wasn't stuck on his anger with her. She knew that it was a powerful emotion and was glad that he had moved on from it. He seemed happy with Pansy- happier than he had been before at least, if the kiss they had shared in the great hall the other day was anything to go by. "Right, I'm all done here- make sure to clean up any mess you make when you finish the session." Luna smiled at her charms professor.

"Bye sir." He returned the smile and waved as he left the room. Luna turned around to look around at the classroom. It was completely silent, the first time she had ever experienced it in this classroom. It gave her a strange sense of peace knowing that she was alone in this classroom, in this part of the tower. She took a deep breath and walked over to the windows. One of them was open, allowing a small breeze to dance across the hands that were resting on the windowsill. She leaned her head against the cool glass and felt the buzz of unknown creatures against her head. She lifted her head back up and examined the window. She couldn't see anything. Perhaps if she wore her spectrespecs she might be able to see them but she didn't have them with her. She was about to lean her head on the glass again to check if she had actually felt anything when the sound of a familiar female voice made her stand up and face the doorway of the classroom.

"Have a good session," Pansy said with a giggle and she stood on her tiptoes to give Draco a kiss. When they parted Pansy waved at her with a smile. There was something about the smile that was off but Luna dismissed the thought. After the differences Pansy and her had had over the years she was bound to doubt her but Luna knew she was probably overthinking things and waved back. Draco walked into the room as Pansy left with one last check over her shoulder. Now it was only the two of them.

"So I was thinking we should start off with the freezing spell," Luna said with a smile. She got straight to the point, knowing he would appreciate getting straight to work. She had noticed his difficulty with the spell when they went over it at the very beginning of the year for a recap.

"What do I do?" He asked and she noticed the way he avoided looking at her. Why? She smiled at him and his strange habits even though he couldn't see her.

"Well the incantation is glacius and there isn't any complicated wand movement. You just point it." She walked to the door at the side of the classroom which held odd little things that professor Flitwick often used for examples in his lessons. She found what she was looking for quickly and put the bucket before Draco. "Give me a moment." She said to him and she popped out of the room. Moments later a house elf appeared with two jugs of water. Luna quickly took them from her and said, "Thanks Donny." The house elf nodded and left the room quickly as Luna poured the water into the bucket she had put in front of Draco. In lesson professor Flitwick had produced a pool for them to freeze. She noticed that the depth of the pool had been a difficulty for many students including Draco so she decided to only use a small bucket.

"Now?" He asked. Luna nodded, knowing he could see her from the corner of his eyes. "Glacius." He said, pointing his wand at the bucket. "Nothing happened." Draco said, sounding confused. The mistake was so small that most people would have missed it but Luna had seen it.

"Did you do the same thing in lesson?" She asked, moving to stand beside him now that he wasn't casting anything. He nodded once, his jaw set. He looked annoyed… frustrated. Luna put her hand on his shoulder and smiled when he seemed to relax but only to tense up again and shrug her off. Luna didn't mind, some people didn't like to be comforted that way. "Well, when you point your wand you flick it slightly. You can barely tell though." She said with a smile.

Draco frowned, "But how does that make a difference? It's barely any movement." Her smile grew wider as she recognised the old indignation she hadn't seen from him in a while.

"Well," She said, pausing to think for a moment. "You know how in some potions you put ingredients in that don't affect the taste, smell or look of the potion?" Draco nodded seemingly unsure as to where she was taking this line of thought. "But if they get missed out then they can completely change the potion, same with if they are added in." Draco nodded again, his eyes widening in realisation.

"Like with which way you stir the potion. It seems like it won't have an effect but it does." Luna nodded, knowing that he understood.

"So do you want to try again?"


	25. Chapter 25

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 25

Draco was now sat in the great hall. Everyone knew what the assembly was about but they still sat in eager anticipation of what professor Dumbledore was going to announce. "The purpose of this assembly was to announce the Yule ball." Draco noticed some people leaning forward in their seats, clearly fascinated by what the headmaster had to say. He didn't care. Not really. He was going to take Pansy, have a couple of dances then make his excuses and leave. These dances and balls were all the same, Draco knew first-hand how stilted and forced they were. He knew that his father would want him to put some measure of effort into his attire and would also want him to stick around for longer than he was planning to, for appearances sake. And he would try. He honestly would, look where not listening to his father had gotten him. With Pansy Parkinson and friends that were becoming increasingly distant. He really should make an effort with them but he couldn't knowing that he had effectively severed their ties with the new friends they had made. Dumbledore broke him from his thoughts by speaking again, "We understand that people will be taking dates." Draco tried not to snort at Dumbledore addressing dates and romance. It was probably the first time he had heard him speak about the topic- finally a reprieve from the repetitive speeches at the start of every year! "We will be having compulsory dance lessons so you can do the traditional Yule ball first dance." At the sound of a few audible grumbles Dumbledore smiled. "We do have a surprise that I'm sure you will all enjoy but that will be revealed closer to the time. Now, back to dates. We want to encourage people from different houses to start talking. Your friends can be from any of the houses. House unity is important, don't confine yourself to just your own. For example Miss Lovegood and Mr Malfoy." Dumbledore said with a smile at Luna and him. Draco sat frozen. What was the old fool doing?! Did he not know that he and Luna weren't together anymore? "They are the perfect example of house unity. And a Ravenclaw and Slytherin together?" Pansy, who was sat beside him made to stand up.

"What are you doing?" Draco hissed.

"I'm going to correct him on who your girlfriend actually is." She whispered back hotly. She was going to embarrass herself and him if she spoke now. As if he had let the man speak for so long- what an idiot he was! He should have stopped him earlier; he would only embarrass himself now that everyone thought they were a couple. He could just imagine how he would look with everyone staring at him. He would be mocked, surely.

"Sit down." He susurrated. Pansy looked at him in disbelief and Draco added, "Trust me." She sat down. Draco breathed a sigh of relief.

"What a brilliant pairing! With the originality, wit and intelligence of Miss Lovegood combined with the ambition, cunning and intelligence that Mr Malfoy also possesses; it is bound to be a pairing that flourishes!" Draco could only hope the old man would finish his speech soon.

* * *

Luna was walking to the Gryffindor common room with Ginny after the assembly. She hadn't interrupted professor Dumbledore through his speech. She didn't want to make him feel silly for not knowing that her and Draco weren't together anymore. She had noticed that Pansy had looked quite upset. She'd have to apologise for not saying anything but she was sure she would understand.

Luna was just outside the portrait of the 'fat lady' when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to find herself face to face with Pansy. Her face was quite red and Luna noticed the hand that was curled into a fist at her side was trembling. "Are you okay?" Luna asked. Pansy's eyes went wide and she opened her mouth to speak.

"Am I okay?" She repeated. "Am I okay?!" This time she shouted. She looked at Luna with an expression she could only pinpoint as confusion. She let out a laugh that sounded hysterical and said, "Of _course_! Innocent little Lovegood is _so_ concerned about me! Draco isn't here you know! It's fine, there's no need to act like a good little girl." Luna looked at the girl stood before her in confusion. The smiles they had exchanged earlier now seemed horribly insignificant. She thought they had gotten past everything. She was clearly mistaken.

"Listen Parkinson-" Ginny begun but was cut off by Pansy before she got the rest of her sentence out.

"No _you_ listen. The pair of you blood traitor scu-" But this time Pansy was cut off. By a punch to the face. Luna was pushed backwards as the fight between her best friend and Pansy drew a crowd. She tried to push her way to the front to separate them but she couldn't and all she could see was an occasional limb or bit of hair. Suddenly the crowd surrounding the two girls dispersed and Luna quickly saw why. Professor Mcgonagall was making her way towards the pair with a thunderous look in her eyes. With a tense flick of her wand Pansy and Ginny were flung apart- Ginny hitting the wall beside the portrait and Pansy the opposite wall.

"Pansy?" Luna turned around to see Draco stood behind her, looking incredibly confused at the dishevelled state of the two girls before him.

"Mr Malfoy I suggest you go back to your-"

"Professor Snape sent me to give you these potions in your office. What happened?"

"I'll tell you what happened!" Pansy began.

"Miss Parkinson, if you don't be quiet-"

"I don't care!" Pansy spat. "Your _girlfriend_ was acting all little miss innocent! She's trying to steal you from me! And you're falling for it!"

"What are you talking about?!" Draco exclaimed, clearly not understanding what Pansy was saying.

"You didn't let me interrupt Dumbledore when he was making that stupid speech about you both! It's obvious her attempts at getting you back are working otherwise you would've corrected him yourself!"

"Listen Pans-"

"Don't try and lie to me Draco!" She was shouting now. "You still like her! Just break up with me!" Draco stood frozen. He looked quite shocked. "Why don't I make this easier for you?! We're done!" His expression changed slightly but Luna couldn't pinpoint exactly what the emotion was. He strode forward and pushed the two vials he had into Professor Mcgonagall's hands before marching down the corridor and out of sight.

"Dumbledore's office. This instant!" Professor Mcgonagall hissed. "Miss Lovegood, please go back to your common room." Luna walked away from the two girls and towards her common room. She hoped that Ginny wouldn't get into too much trouble.

* * *

Albus paced the length of his office after the two girls left. He had known that Mr Malfoy and Miss Lovegood weren't a couple anymore but he had hoped to push them together with his speech. After the attacks at the world cup he had wanted to put an influence in the young boy's life that wasn't a pureblood fanatic. He knew it was only a matter of time before Draco was pulled into the circle of death eaters and it was important that he stopped that from happening. The boy was a skilled brewer- clearly having Severus as a godfather had its perks- his skills would be put to good use on the side of the light. However he had not anticipated the fight that had erupted between Miss Weasley and Miss Parkinson. He hadn't wanted anybody to come to any harm. That was the entire point of having Miss Lovegood and Mr Malfoy as a couple.


	26. Chapter 26

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 26

Blaise jogged down to the clearing in the forbidden forest where they had arranged to meet the night before- he had been making his way back to the common room late when Cho had told him that they needed to meet up. He didn't know what she was doing up late at the time but had a good idea once he had sat down to eat his breakfast the next morning. Talk of Ginny and Pansy's fight had spread fast- of course it had spread fast. Everyone had been anticipating the day Ginny and Pansy finally fought. Apparently it hadn't been anything disappointing- everyone seemed to be in a mutual unspoken agreement that Ginny had won. Blaise hadn't seen the fight but judging by Pansy's no show to breakfast and Ginny only having two scratches on her cheek, Blaise guessed that Pansy's injuries were worse. He knew that being a Slytherin he should've been siding with Pansy but Ginny had been his friend for a while and wasn't currently making his best friend miserable.

When he got there he only saw Cho. "Where's Ginny?" He asked.

"Nice to see you too!" She said, and laughed.

"No! I didn't mean- you know what I meant!" He finally got out. He felt his cheeks turning red- surely he looked as flustered as he felt. The thought only served to make him heat up more. Cho laughed again and he sighed in relief, realising she hadn't been annoyed.

"Ginny's in detention for her fight yesterday. Surely you've heard of it considering it involved one of your beloved Slytherin's?" She asked, teasingly. He wasn't about to rise to the bait.

"Strangely enough I seem to not be too concerned about the Slytherin that's making my best friend miserable." He said with mock nonchalance.

"Where's Theo?" She asked.

"Homework." Blaise stated. "He's behind in Transfiguration."

"So it's just you and me then." She said with a smile.

"Just you and me."

Blaise told her about his discussion with Yordan and how he believed that Luna hadn't cheated on Draco. Cho had told him about how Pansy had broken up with Draco the night before. That had come as a surprise; nobody had mentioned _that_ at breakfast. "It should be easier to get Draco and Luna back together now though… right?" He only added the 'right?' at the end at Cho's doubtful expression. What was she thinking?

Cho shook her head, "We need to be even more careful. We don't want Luna to be a rebound. We have to build this up carefully." Blaise nodded in understanding.

"So how do we build it up? They have a tutoring session tonight- I heard Flitwick-"

" _Professor_ Flitwick." Cho said with a raised eyebrow.

"I heard _Professor_ Flitwick talking about Draco's progress in freezing charms and how he had helped Luna organise for the session 'tonight'." Cho looked up at him, her eyes twinkling.

"Can we meet up tonight?" She asked. What was she planning?

"Where? And shall I bring Theo?" Cho nodded.

"We'll all meet at the end of the corridor from Professor Flitwick's classroom."

Blaise frowned, "What's your plan?"

"I don't know yet- we're going to go in there and make it less awkward. I don't know what our excuse is going to be. We have until tonight to think of something." He snorted at her determination and stuck out his elbow.

"Do you want me to walk you back up?"

Half an hour after dinner had finished, Blaise found himself at the end of a dark corridor, lit only by some torches. Towards the end of it he could see light filtering through the underneath of the door and he knew that was where he would find Draco and Luna. He hadn't been able to bring Theo with him. He'd been incredibly tired after all his work on transfiguration and Blaise had found him asleep, still in his robes, when he got back to the boy's dormitory after dinner. He hadn't had the heart to wake him. He hoped that Cho or Ginny had thought something up too because he hadn't been able to think of anything. Useless. "Blaise?" He spun around in alarm despite knowing who the voice belonged to. Cho. She was alone.

"Where's Ginny?" He whispered in confusion.

"She's not allowed to leave her common room- she wanted to sneak out but I didn't want to get her into any more trouble."

Blaise nodded and asked, "Have you thought up an idea yet? I couldn't think of anything." He noticed the way her jaw tightened momentarily.

"No." She said simply. She huffed in frustration, "Where's Theo?"

"He's been working hard all day and he fell asleep. I didn't want to wake him up." He answered with a shrug.

"What's that noise?" Cho hissed suddenly. Blaise stood completely still and listened- at first he could hear nothing but then... the sound of footsteps. Hurriedly, Blaise looked for somewhere to hide but they were exposed. What would they do? He came to a quick decision and grabbed Cho's hand.

"Run for i-" But before he could finish off his sentence he saw a shadow fall across Cho's face. He turned around, feeling dread in the pit of his stomach. Professor McGonagall.

"Blaise Zabini? Cho Chang?" She shook her head and looked surprised. "I would not expect you two to be up and wandering the corridors this late. You should be in your common rooms if you don't have any extracurricular activities. I suggest you go back to your common rooms before I deduct house points." Blaise took the chance he was offered and walked away from the corridor they had just inhabited. As he was walking away he heard, "Another Slytherin and Ravenclaw together!" That was what gave him his idea.


	27. Chapter 27

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**Recap:**

**Ginny and Pansy fight- Pansy breaks up with Draco.**

**Cho and Blaise decide this is the right time for them to try and get Draco and Luna back together and Blaise comes up with a plan.**

Chapter 27

Draco had mastered the freezing spell- finally. He hadn't let his triumph show on his face, not wanting Luna to get any sort of wrong impression. Pansy always got the wrong impression. He wasn't risking Luna thinking he still liked her. Well… he still did, didn't he? He'd only broken up with her because she'd cheated on him but he still liked her- he didn't like that. She was different to any other girl- she didn't care. These tutoring sessions were what especially bothered him. She never seemed fazed by the fact she was next to her ex. Clearly the break up hadn't meant much to her, he thought bitterly. Draco's attention snapped back to the charm he was practicing when he felt Luna move closer to him. His concentration couldn't slip. She'd come closer- he didn't want her to come closer. His emotions would betray him. He knew they would.

They were midway through their tutoring session when Draco heard the door hit the wall with a bang. He spun around- forgetting to keep his concentration on the charm Luna was teaching him- and was shocked by what met his eyes. Cho and Blaise were kissing each other with urgency- stumbling in their haste. He turned to look at Luna who looked unfazed but hadn't made a move to make their presence known. She was shocked- he could just tell. He was just about to clear his throat and make his presence known when Blaise caught his eye and suddenly straightened up. If he hadn't been so shocked Draco was sure he would have laughed- but he was shocked. Very shocked. He hadn't even suspected that there was anything going on between Blaise and Cho yet here they were, stood before him and Luna with red cheeks and eyes downcast. He wondered if Theo had known about this or if he had been in the dark as well. Draco stopped thinking and looked around- the silence was making him uncomfortable. Luna was the one who broke it. "We were just practicing some charms," She said with a smile. "If you want to sit in you can." Draco didn't know how she could act so natural!

"N-no thanks but thanks for the offer," Cho said quickly, "We were just going." Draco frowned but Blaise refused to meet his eyes as he turned around and shuffled back out of the door. He wondered if they had been going out whilst him and Luna were together… It was probably his own relationship that had set them up. He was broken out of his thoughts by a laugh from beside him. He ignored the tight feeling in his stomach that came from the familiar sound and spoke.

"What's so funny?" Luna looked at him momentarily before dissolving into laughter again. Despite being confused as to what she was laughing at, he couldn't help but smile at her infectious laughter- it had been a while since he had heard it and he realised he missed it. He missed it a lot.

She finally stopped laughing to answer him, "The look on your face!" That seemed to be too much for her and she started laughing again… this time he joined in.

* * *

Cho and Blaise had been listening outside of the door after they left and the sound of laughter was like music to their ears. Cho pulled Blaise away from the door and down the corridor, "Goodnight, we did a good job." She whispered with a small titter.

"Goodnight," He whispered back and watched as she walked away from him and out of sight. He had been so nervous about approaching her with the idea- but she'd accepted and it had made some small measure of improvement. If they were laughing together it showed that they could build up their relationship again… right? If he was honest he had expected them to say something- get angry and work together… but the results they had gotten weren't bad at all. Blaise lifted his fingers and touched his lips. Cho had kissed him with such passion… it had been frighteningly realistic and he'd had to remind himself that this was all a part of a plan. But no matter how much he tried to dismiss the kiss from his mind, there was no denying it had felt good. Better than any other kiss he had experienced before. He shook his head- he was not the focus here. They were trying to get Luna and Draco back together not him and Cho. And he didn't even think of Cho like that. She was just a friend! One kiss- a _fake_ kiss at that- didn't change anything.

* * *

Cho lay in her four poster with the curtains drawn around her. She was staring at the ceiling and wondering about what had just happened. Her and Blaise had succeeded in getting Luna and Draco to laugh together again! It didn't seem like much but it was a big step from where everything had been. Her thoughts turned to the plan Blaise had thought up and she traced her lips with her fingers. They still tingled with the memory of the fierce kiss she had shared with him and she fought to bring herself back to earth by reminding herself that it was just part of a plan. Just because it had been a part of a plan didn't discount the fact that it had felt good… amazing even. He had responded with such fervour it was difficult to believe that it hadn't been real. She curled up and attempted to remove those thoughts from her mind and sleep.

* * *

They both spent the night tossing and turning.


	28. Chapter 28

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**This is the longest chapter I've written for this fic! :)**

Chapter 28

The next morning at breakfast there was a lot of excitement- with the Yule ball coming up everyone had been eager to get on with shopping for clothes and accessories. Luna could feel the anticipation in the air and it was infectious. She couldn't help but smile as Cho sat down beside her, looking tired but breathless with delight- and, Luna believed, from running down to the great hall. "Did you hear?" She asked. Luna frowned in confusion; she had heard a lot of things this morning. Cho seemed to understand and answered the question herself. "We're going shopping! And we aren't just limited to Hogsmeade!"

Luna grinned at the excitement that was evident in her friend's voice and asked, "Where should we go?" They had discussed possible shops in Hogsmeade earlier in the year but now they had a huge range of places they could go- Luna closed her eyes and thought of the smells, textures and colours the shops would be sure to contain and was able to comprehend the glee Cho seemed to be feeling.

Ginny appeared suddenly and sat herself on the other side of Luna, "Diagon alley has some amazing shops!" Luna's smile only grew at the appearance of her other best friend and she listened to the suggestions being put forth by both of them.

"Madam Malkin's."

"Twilfitt and Tattings."

"Gladrags."

"Janer and Pelowski."

"Okay so we're definitely going to Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade!" Cho said with a laugh. She was about to speak when Professor Dumbledore stood up and addressed the students.

"Today," Professor Dumbledore said in a booming voice, "you will all be going out to shop!" He paused momentarily to let his words sink in. "You will not be shopping only in Hogsmeade! You have a range of areas where you will be accompanied by a member of staff. You have the options of:

\- Hogsmeade

\- Diagon Alley

\- Shelpstone

\- Alkenshore

You will only be able to choose one of these areas because teachers will not be able to supervise your journeys to and from all areas." A hushed wave of conversation carried across the great hall, students attempting to decide which location they would like to shop at.

Ginny, Cho and Luna had decided- after much deliberation- that they wanted to go to Diagon Alley. It was a place they were all familiar with and had a wide range of stores that catered to all of their tastes. They had all been given 'coupons' as well- fifty percent off of any item bought for the Yule Ball. That had made it easier for them to choose Diagon Alley- there were many shops that were expensive but with the coupons it wouldn't be a stretch on anyone's budget.

* * *

Draco left Twilfitt and Tattings with a look of disgust on his face- his father had recommended he choose Diagon Alley for his shopping location but so far he hadn't found anything worth his time. He had tried many designer stores but there was nothing to his taste- too bright, too dark, too fitted, too loose. "Let's try Madame Malkins?" Theo said with an edge of doubt in his voice- he had only bought a tie and Blaise had only gotten a pair of shoes after looking in five shops.

"They have in store tailoring too." Blaise said- showing his agreement and somehow managing to be hopeful. Shopping had always been a chore for him but his friends had insisted he come along with them. Besides, his father was expecting him to get something brand new- even if they were the exact same design as the dress robes he had won for his mother's birthday, they would still be new. Something to punctuate the wealth of his family.

The boys had been seated on plush purple leather sofas the moment they had walked in and had been handed champagne glasses filled with water. Madame Malkins didn't serve butterbeer and the boys were too young to be served anything else. Draco was about to relax into the sofa when a familiar voice made him sit straight back up- his back ramrod straight. Luna. He dared to turn his head and saw her enter through the doorway- her two friends replying to what she had said moments ago. Draco settled back, attempting to act natural when he noticed Blaise looking at the group with a strange expression. Then he noticed who he was looking at… Cho. Draco watched, fascinated- his previous discomfort vanished as a moment of silence fell upon the group of girls who had finally realised they were not alone. He noticed a quick exchange of the briefest of looks between Blaise and Cho and looked down- not wanting his friend to feel uncomfortable if he realised that Draco had seen them. A sudden voice cut through the moment, "If you'd follow me, we're ready to take your measurements and find you some clothes." It was an assistant. He hoped he'd find something here. He couldn't take much more shopping.

* * *

Ginny was looking through the two racks of clothing that had materialised before her. The six of them had been ushered into a room and told to take a quiz that somehow helped them with what appeared before them. Her clothes consisted of reds, oranges and golds. Cho's were silvers, light blues and pinks. Luna's were pale yellows, violets and blues. Ginny had picked out two dresses and left the other five people to try them on.

She emerged moments later, settled on a red dress (Gryffindor) with a gold rose embroidered on the bust that spread its leaves to her waist- that had been easier than she had thought it would be. The quiz had probably narrowed things down quite a bit.

* * *

Theo and Blaise had gotten themselves some dress robes- nothing too fancy but not shabby either. Draco pulled out three dress robes from the two racks before him and held them up against himself one by one. "What do you guys think?" He asked turning to Theo. He didn't know- they all looked good but he didn't want to be the one to decide.

"They all look good." Theo said with a smile. He knew that wasn't the answer Draco was looking for. "What do you think Blaise?" Theo struggled to not burst out laughing at the look of betrayal on Blaise's face- nobody liked helping Draco choose clothes.

"Yeah they all look good… why don't you try them on and see if you can cancel them down?" Draco grumbled a bit but made his way towards the changing rooms, much to Theo and Blaise's relief. The moment Draco had passed out of site Blaise spun around to face Theo. "Why did you do that for? You know how fussy he is- he always has a go if we don't choose the right thing!" The words were in a whisper but Theo could hear the exasperation in them and struggled not to laugh- this time he failed. "What's so funny?"

"We're so terrified of helping Draco choose clothes," He said with a snort.

"He's as much of a tyrant about fashion as his parents- I swear that was one gene they didn't need to pass on." Blaise said with a grumble but he quickly stopped. Theo looked around; expecting Draco to have come out of the changing rooms but all he could see was Cho. He looked at his friend curiously… why was he staring at her?

* * *

Ginny and Cho were now helping Luna pick her dress, they were all stuck between three dresses- personally Ginny thought the violet one looked awful- and they weren't any closer to choosing one than they had been five minutes ago. Cho had bought her dress. It was light pink with delicate silver embroidery all across the bust- the embroidery stopped at the fitted waist with a beautiful simple but large skirt. "Ginny, I'm just going to get myself another drink. Do you guys want a refill?" Cho asked, breaking the contemplative silence they had been stood in. Ginny shook her head and so did Luna. "I'll just be a minute." She said and turned to find an assistant, leaving Ginny and Luna alone.

"Which one do you least like out of them all?" Ginny asked, attempting to cut down the three to two.

Luna frowned slightly, "I like them all…"

"Why don't you try them on?" Came a voice from behind Ginny. She turned, surprised, to see Theo. "They might look different once you try them on."

Luna looked up and smiled, "Do you know where the fitting rooms are?" She asked. Theo nodded and led the way.

"Here they are," He said with a smile once they reached the open room. It had sections that were curtained off but only one of them seemed to be occupied. There were chairs in the open areas- probably so people could step out and show friends or family and get a second opinion on what they were wearing. Luna smiled in thanks and entered one of the curtained rooms. Ginny was about to settle down into one of the chairs when she was yanked out of the changing rooms by Theo.

"Oi-"

"Shhh," Theo effectively cut her off but she frowned at him, clearly indicating she was expecting a good explanation. He gestured for her to follow him a bit further away from the fitting rooms- she reluctantly complied. Before she could ask anything Theo whispered, "Draco's in there."

"So?" She asked, confused.

" _So,_ I have a plan." Ginny frowned and Theo rolled his eyes. It wasn't her fault that he was being so vague! "We're going to lock them in there together." Ginny's eyes widened and she nodded to show her agreement to the plan.

* * *

Draco stepped out of the curtained room he had changed in. He had cancelled out one pair of dress robes but he was completely stuck between the other two. Blaise and Theo could give him a second opinion. He had thought that they might have waited in the fitting rooms but they had left- with a sigh he opened the door to find them. Well, he tried to open the door. He gave the handle another tug but the door wasn't budging- was he locked in? A rustling from behind him alerted him to another person in the room- Draco turned around to see who it was and had to stop himself from gasping. It was Luna. Why was she everywhere he went?! She had just stepped out from her changing room and was wearing a vintage yellow tea dress. It looked good but it seemed rather plain for a ball. "What's wrong?" She asked, breaking the silence they had been stood in. He shook his head, partly at the situation and partly to stop himself becoming a simpering idiot at the sound of her voice. What was wrong with him?

"We're locked in." He said simply, rattling the door again to show their predicament. He hoped he wasn't acting too uptight- or appearing like he was trying to appear normal. Luna simply stood there- facial expression completely neutral. He resisted the urge to straighten the robes he was wearing or touch his hair, he couldn't show his nerves. Finally she moved- sitting down in one of the chairs for friends or family.

"We should make the most of our time." She said simply. What did she mean by that?

"W-what do you mean?" He asked, cursing the slight tremor in his voice. Luna looked at him- straight at him, with the large silver eyes that stole his breath away.

He almost missed what she said, "We're here to try on clothes- we could choose our clothes." He nodded- they could ask for each other's opinion. _Sort yourself out- stop overanalysing everything._

"Okay then," He didn't know what else to say. Luna seemed to know what to do though and she stood up.

"What do you think of this dress?" She asked with a smile- he diverted his eyes from her smile, not wanting her to see the power it had on him. _For fucks sake Draco, get a bloody grip!_ He had already made his judgment when he first saw her.

"It's okay but too plain for a ball." He said the words quickly. Efficiently. That was better. Luna smiled and nodded but quickly turned thoughtful as she scrutinised the dress robes he was wearing. The sudden change in her demeanour didn't surprise him- Luna flicked through emotions easily.

She finally seemed to come to a conclusion and spoke, "They look nice but it's quite boring." He was slightly affronted by the straight-forwardness of her statement but nodded reluctantly in agreement.

Draco waited, sat on one of the white seats as Luna changed into her second dress- he had changed into the other pair of dress robes- these ones were a very dark grey… almost black. He had left it open so he didn't look too stuffy- the inside was lined with a deep green. He shifted uncomfortably as he heard a rustle of fabric, trying not to think about Luna on the other side of the curtain- thankfully he didn't have to wait long as the curtain opened with Luna in a violet dress. It was floor length and fitted well- but the frills… there were so many of them. A thin band of gold sequins wove their way down the sides but were swallowed by the frills. "I don't like it." He said simply. Luna didn't seem to mind his criticism though.

"Stand up," She said. It was uttered softly and he knew the words weren't a command- but Draco's breath still hitched as he stood up under her gaze. He willed his heart to stop beating so quickly as she stepped closer to him. Her hand moved towards him, almost in slow motion and he stiffened as he felt the pressure of it on his stomach. He dared himself to look down to see her doing up the buttons on his dress robes. After what felt like an eternity she finally stepped back with a smile. "That's better." Luna said nonchalantly, seeming completely unaware to how she had just made him feel. "I like this one better."

"Do you?" He turned around to look in the full length mirror and saw that as well as buttoning up the robes she had also folded part of them, creating makeshift lapels that had the green of the inside of the robes on show. It looked pretty good- but there was something bugging him about it that he couldn't place his finger on.

"I think you should ask a tailor to put a dark grey trim on the lapels." That was it. The green was too sudden and looked too bold- the grey trim would add elegance to the robes.

"I will- if we can get out of these changing rooms," He grumbled. Luna laughed- apparently the situation was amusing to her- and left to change into her final dress.

Finally she opened the curtain and stepped out in a dark blue ball gown. Bronze… glitter? Covered the bust and gradually faded- the skirt of the dress only dotted with the sequins. She could have been wearing the night sky- it was beautiful. He schooled his face into a mask of mild interest and said, "That's the best one."

She grinned widely, "I think this one is my favourite." He frowned slightly as she walked forward a bit more so she could see herself in the mirror.

"It needs fitting a bit more." He said, frowning openly now at the waist of the dress.

"I don't think I tied up the back properly," She said, lifting up her hair and turning around so her back was facing him. The back was tied like boot laces- something his mother called 'corseted'. "Could you do it?" Draco knew Luna had asked the question innocently. It didn't stop his cheeks from flushing a deep red. He was thankful that Luna was facing the other way. _All she's asking you to do is tie up her dress. Stop overreacting._

* * *

**Shelpstone and Alkenshore were made up :)**

**The shop names were found on the Harry Potter wiki.**

**If you want to see the dresses then they're on my tumblr- there's a page for A Delicate Cure on there :) The blog is scrumptiousinternetllama dot tumblr dot com :)**

**If you read my last fic you'll know what the quiz in the shop contained and all that- If you haven't read it and want to know what was inside it, it's in chapter 15 of my other fic (Experience). Save you time wading through the first fourteen chapters XD**

**Hope you enjoyed!**


	29. Chapter 29

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 29

Draco tried to suppress the smile that came on his face as he tied his tie. The grin had been appearing at odd moments during the past week- remembering the time he'd spent with Luna in Madame Malkins kept making him grin. He needed to stop acting like a lovesick fool. He frowned as he remembered the flustered assistant rushing in and apologising. He should have been glad to be let out- but he wasn't. He knew he still harboured feelings for Luna but he didn't know if she felt the same way. She didn't give herself away… He wouldn't be surprised if she didn't. After the things he'd said to her, he would imagine it would be difficult to fancy him.

Blaise had just come back to him and Theo after disappearing to get drinks for them all. "Thanks mate." Theo said and he took a grateful sip. Blaise nodded in acknowledgement, half-heartedly and sat heavily in his seat. What was up with him? Well, there was only one way to find out.

"What's wrong?" The blonde asked, having a good idea about what was bothering his friend.

Blaise shook his head, "Nothing, just tired after getting through all them." He gestured to the crush of teenagers on the dancefloor- Draco didn't see the logic in locating the drinks table on the opposite side of the room from the tables. He grimaced for his friend despite knowing he was lying about what was bothering him- the idea of manoeuvring through that crowd was positively nauseating. The ball had only started five minutes ago- the traditional dance had just ended and people were still only just arriving.

"Draco!" Came a loud voice from behind him. Draco turned around to see an exuberant Viktor Krum making his way towards him. He had brought Hermione Granger as his date… that had been a surprise. But it was Viktor Krum- he knew what he was doing. Although spending a lot of time with the quidditch player had rid him of a lot of his nervousness, he still couldn't help but be in awe that a quidditch player- _a professional quidditch player_ \- was talking to him. Draco pushed past his thoughts and grinned at the Durmstrang student, putting out a hand only to be pulled into a bone-crushing bear hug.

Draco laughed, hoping that it didn't sound pained and asked, "What's gotten you so happy?" He just about managed to push out the words.

At the question Viktor released him and spoke, "Because of you I'm at this dance with the person I wanted to be with!" Draco was confused but Viktor seemed to think that what he was talking about was the most obvious thing in the world. When had he ever advised Viktor to court Granger? "If we hadn't had that conversation on the first night I came here- I do not think I would be at this dance with the person I wanted to be with." Draco's mind raced back to the conversation they had, had on the first night Viktor had arrived.

_"You are Draco Malfoy?"_

_"Yes I am."_

_"Your family is very noble and old. The boy... Blaise was telling me."_

_"It is. We are proud of our lineage."_

_"Then I must ask. Why are you 'with' the Lovegood girl?"_

_"Well... We balance each other out I guess. She's the dreamy, imaginative one and I'm the shrewd, critical one. We balance out each others strong personalities. It just works."_

_"But does it not bother you?"_

_"What?"_

_"That her family isn't noble like yours. That she is different."_

_"The same logic applies. We balance each other out. It doesn't matter to me."_

The memory hit him like a punch to the gut- he remembered how easily the lie had tripped off his tongue… and how he had tossed and turned all night because he had even managed to convince himself that what he had said was true.

"Ah, there's the other person I wanted to see!" Viktor exclaimed and Draco turned towards the staircase, (that had been added just for the Yule Ball), to see who he was talking about. His jaw dropped- there, at the top of the staircase was Luna. Her hair had been pulled up into a bun- tendrils escaping here and there. He wasn't sure if the effect was intentional but it looked beautiful. He watched, entranced, as she descended the steps in her deep blue dress- the bronze glitter casting dancing lights on the wall. She was as beautiful as the night sky. As she came closer Viktor made his way over to her and began talking animatedly. He watched as her features lit up with a breath-taking smile- her eyes dancing with delight. He remembered the way her eyes had filled with hurt when he had insulted her on that staircase and felt a pang- he couldn't possibly make her as happy as she deserved to be.

* * *

Viktor released Luna from his embrace and thanked her again. She looked beautiful- just like Hermione but in her own way… Hermione. He had only had the courage to approach her because of Luna and Draco's advice. She wasn't a pureblood… or conventionally attractive- well tonight she was. She wasn't interested in quidditch; her studies were what caught her attention. She was everything he shouldn't have liked… yet he did. "Thank you Luna," He repeated for what must have been the fifth time. Luna laughed- her face lighting up. He felt a pang of regret on behalf of both Luna and Draco. He did not know why the other students had thought their pairing to be odd. They were perfect for each other- they really did balance each other out. But what could he do?

* * *

Cho paced the grounds, waiting for Blaise to arrive. She had signalled to him that she wanted to speak with him and he had nodded in return. What was taking him so long?

A voice made her stop pacing, "Cho?" It was Blaise.

"About bloody time," She said with a huff.

Blaise gave a snort, "I came as quickly as I could- I didn't want to look suspicious."

"I think that everyone in the hall had time to watch where we were." The sarcasm was evident in her voice but she had to supress a shiver at the use of 'we'. It might have been the cold though.

"Well, why did you call me out here?" He asked, but there was no impatience she could detect in his tone.

Cho grinned, "Draco still likes Luna." Blaise looked completely confused and she rolled her eyes.

"How do you know?" He asked, clearly eager for an explanation.

"When she first came into the hall- well, at the top of those stairs, I saw her and was about to go over to her. But whilst I was walking to her I saw Draco- and he was _staring_ at Luna." She recalled the look of shock and adoration on Draco's face and knew there was some chance of getting the two back together.

"So?" Cho looked at Blaise incredulously. So? So?! Was he an idiot?

"Blaise." She said slowly and deliberately. "He was looking at her- his eyes were not leaving her. It was like he was under a spell- and it was obvious that he thought she looked amazing." Blaise nodded slowly, looking as if he was still thinking about what she had just said. She could hear the music from the great hall- Magic Works (Weird Sisters) was playing. As the song ended she shivered- it was definitely the cold this time.

"Here," Blaise said, handing her a long jacket and she realised he had taken off his outer robes, leaving him in a fitted shirt, bow tie and tailored trousers- and his grey undercoat that hung rather comically over the top of the other items of clothing. Well it would have been comical if she didn't find it so oddly attractive. She grinned in thanks and laughed as the music from inside changed to a slow, melodic song.

"Want to dance?" She said, jokingly sticking out her arm- but her heart was beating, anticipating his response. Blaise bowed low and she snorted- he was taking the piss.

They danced to the song- under the stars… laughing all the while.

* * *

**I've started a forum called 'Harry Potter Prompts!' on FFN!**

**If anybody's having trouble with writing I hope the prompts spark something :) I actually want to try a few myself whenever I have the time :)**

**If you want to add any prompts then go for it :)**

**I hope you guys enjoyed!**


	30. Chapter 30

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 30

Draco sat down at the dinner table- feeling slightly groggy from the drinking after the Yule ball the night before. Everything felt so… dull after the night's festivities. He grabbed a slice of toast and a cup of tea that had materialised before him and took a sip- and then spat it right back out. Discreetly of course. He had been taught table etiquette by the best. The metallic taste rang on his tongue and he spat again to try and get rid of it but to no avail. He took a bite of toast and relaxed when the taste was masked slightly. Taking another bite, Draco lifted up the mug that his tea was in and swished the contents around with his other hand- there wasn't anything out of the ordinary in his cup- as far as he could see. He looked up to the head table and saw that his godfather was looking right at him. He must have noticed his odd behaviour. Draco nodded towards his cup and let himself relax when Snape stood up and left the great hall- presumably to his office. Draco quickly stood up to follow- what was up with his drink?

He was just about to enter Snape's office when Pansy bumped right into him. "Sorry!" She exclaimed- he shook his head in amusement, the delicate blush covering her cheeks matching the soft tendrils of hair escaping her ponytail that framed her face. The cup of tea in his hand had spilled onto his uniform and robes but it had just been an accident- he could get the robes cleaned easily.

"It's alright," He said with a smile and entered the office. The moment he went in the door slammed behind him and he jumped- snapped away from his momentary amusement.

"What was wrong with your drink?" His head of house asked immediately- Draco was caught off guard by the concern he could detect in the older man's voice and held out the cup and the tiny amount of tea it held, the memory of the metallic taste hitting him like a slap in the face. "What was _wrong_ with it?" Snape asked again- and this time Draco could hear an edge of impatience in his voice.

"It tasted like metal." He said simply.

"Is this tea?" His godfather asked, swishing the liquid around the cup suspiciously. Draco nodded, "Did you feel strange after consuming it?"

Draco snorted, "Other than nearly throwing up, you mean?" When all he gained was a glare, he shook his head.

The professor let out a sigh and tied up his long greasy hair- "Go to my floo and call Madame Pomfrey to my office- say it's an emergency. If she asks any questions just cut her off."

"W-why are you calling Madame Pomfrey?" Draco asked, was there something wrong with his health? He didn't _feel_ any different.

A derisive snort accompanied the response he got, "Nothing's wrong with you. At least as far as I can tell- however you do need checking over by a professional just in case you have been given a potion of some sort." Draco nodded and took a seat, relieved.

Only five minutes passed before Draco heard a knock on the door to the office. It swung open without anyone speaking and he knew that his potions professor had opened it wandlessly. "What's wrong?" Madame Pomfrey said breathlessly as she rushed in through the open door.

"Draco." His godfather responded lazily.

"I thought you said there's nothing wrong with me?!"

Snape rolled his eyes and said, "I thought you wouldn't be stupid enough to believe me. Madame Pomfrey, can you cast some diagnostics on the boy? I have reason to believe he has been dosed with a potion of some sort." Madame Pomfrey stepped in front of him and cast her diagnostics and he looked around in amazement as different coloured dots appeared- the predominant ones however, were dots of pink with black streaks going through them. He watched them carefully as they circled lazily around his head.

"Love potion." Madame Pomfrey said grimly as the colours disappeared from around his head.

"What?!" He exclaimed, but no one paid him any heed.

"Will a sober-up potion work on it?" Snape asked but Madame Pomfrey shook her head.

"It seems to be quite potent- the sober-up potion may allow him to think a bit more clearly but not for long. He seems to have been taking it for the past couple of weeks." They were talking about him as if he wasn't there!

"I'm perfectly fine- and thinking straight!" He burst out but all Madame Pomfrey did was shake her head at him.

"You _feel_ fine but you're not." Was all she said, "Severus, could you give Mr. Malfoy some sober-up potion so I can ask him a couple of questions?"

"No! Before you start giving me any potions I want to kno-" And then everything went black.

Draco's head was swimming. "You shouldn't have put him to sleep Severus." The sharp whisper pierced his head.

"He wouldn't have taken the sober-up potion otherwise and you know it." He groaned and the whispers stopped.

"Are you okay?" An urgent voice asked. He recognised it as Madame Pomfrey's and clutched his head to show his pain- his vision was hazy too. He saw a blurred hand reaching towards him and felt his head being tilted back. His head pounded but he tried not to cry out. A liquid was poured down his throat and his pain disappeared. "Is that better?" She asked. Draco nodded, relieved that the pain had evaporated and his vision seemed to have come back to rights. He blinked a couple of times and looked at his surroundings- Madame Pomfrey was stood in front of him, looking concerned and Snape was furiously taking notes at the back of the room. "I'm going to ask you a couple of questions before the sober-up potion wears off- okay?" Draco nodded, he really couldn't be bothered arguing. "Great. Do you have any idea as to who might want to give you a love potion?" Two names popped into his head immediately- both were equally as likely as the other.

"Pansy Parkinson or Luna Lovegood," He said with confidence. Both of them were sneaky and competent with potions. He felt his anger rise up at the fact it may be Luna- he had taught her potions and now she was going to use it against him?! It wasn't as if she hadn't betrayed him before. He didn't know why he was surprised.

"Draco," His godfather was speaking now, his voice sounding urgent. "I want you to keep an eye on those two girls and see if you can figure out which one did this. I'm going to be giving you your drinks from now on. We're going to give you another sleeping potion before the sober-up potion wears off. I have an idea as to which potion you've been given and the antidote is going to take a while to brew. Before we put you back to sleep I have one question. Have you been feeling affectionate towards either of them?"

Draco looked at the stern potions professor and nodded, "Both of them. I saw Pansy and she bumped into me just before I came into your office- I didn't even mind even though she ruined my robes. And I've been feeling like that towards Luna as well- even though I shouldn't after… everything." He saw a shadow pass across the potions professor's face but didn't ask questions as he was handed a vial of sleeping draught.

* * *

"It can't be captiosus fiduciam- a _student_ has brewed this." Severus almost snorted at the mediwitch's naivety.

"You have no idea as to what students can be capable of."

"I have every idea Severus- don't doubt that. But answer me- where did they get the equipment to brew such a potent potion?"

"Both Luna Lovegood and Pansy Parkinson are capable of brewing such a potent potion and the equipment could easily be found in my lab- which students in my house have full access to."

"So are you saying it's Pansy Parkinson? She is in your house." He restrained himself once again from showing any sign of annoyance.

"No. It could have been Luna Lovegood just as easily- she happens to be friends with a few Slytherins."

"How do you know who she's friends with? She isn't even in your house."

"You think I'm not going to keep an eye on who my godson associates with?" He asked, his eyebrow arched.

Poppy laughed and shook her head, "I wouldn't expect any less."

* * *

**'** **Captiosus fiduciam' translates to 'artful trust' in Latin :)**


	31. Chapter 31

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 31 

Draco wandered down the corridor, attempting to blend in with the rest of the students. He did blend in- but now that he was spying on someone he didn't feel like he did. Ugh. He had been trailing after Pansy all day which hadn't been a difficult task. Being in the same house made sure most of their lessons were the same. She hadn't really done anything out of the ordinary- but whenever she saw him she fluttered her lashes and flashed a big smile. It was incredibly odd- he knew she was trying to seem attractive but it just made her look like she had something in her eye. Whatever it was, it made him suspicious. She was trying to impress him; it was possible she had given him the potion. But she had always tried to impress him- it wasn't anything new… she'd never used a love potion before.

The antidote had been made fairly quickly; well at least he thought it had. Snape had informed him that he'd missed the entire day's lessons and dinner. He had caught up with the dinner issue- his stomach wouldn't have allowed otherwise. The questions his friends had asked had been brushed aside easily with the traditional, 'I was in the infirmary, I felt a bit ill' excuse. It surprised him how easily everyone accepted his word.

At break and lunch his gaze alternated between Luna and Pansy and came back to his friends to show them some appearance of attention. It hadn't been difficult to add the 'spying' to his daily routine- but it had been strange to know that one of these girls had possibly dosed him with a powerful love potion. It was downright creepy, actually.

After dinner Draco made his way down to Snape's office. A question had been on his mind all day and he wanted to know the answer. He knocked on the heavy wooden door and it swung open. He had permission to enter. Despite Snape being his godfather Draco was still… not _afraid_ but intimidated by him. Nobody really knew that Draco was his godson and just presumed that Draco was favoured simply because Draco's father was friends with the professor. Draco was snapped from his thoughts by a bored voice, "Are you going to tell me why you're here or should I use legilimency?"

Draco hurried to speak; he didn't doubt that Snape would follow through with his threat. "I was just wondering about the potion- Madame Pomfrey said that it looked like I'd been taking it for a couple of weeks. But I can't have been." A single black eyebrow raised on the potions professor's face.

"And why is that?" He asked. Draco looked up in surprise- the professor almost sounded interested.

"Well, the taste. It was so strong that I can't possibly have been taking it for two weeks without noticing." He knew he had made an obvious mistake when Snape rolled his eyes.

"You're meant to be one of the best potions students in your year and you forget the simplest thing about potions. Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger?" Snape prompted but Draco didn't have a clue. The professor stalked over to a shelf at the back of the classroom and retrieved a book- throwing it in front of Draco. It opened onto page seven by itself, a page titled _'Basic Rules in Potions Making'_. "Read it."

_Concealing a potion  
_ _Concealing a potion or magical draft is relatively easy- unless it has a vivid colouring, (this issue is discussed on page 22.) Generally, in potions, taste is easy to conceal. E.g. In foods or drinks. However even the most cleverly concealed potions can be detected by these simple things:_

_Sandalwood_

_Sandalwood can bring out the smell of a potion. Just burn incense sticks and wave the smoke around your room. After thirty minutes have passed you will be able to smell any concealed potions._

_Alcohol_

_Alcohol can bring out the taste of a potion. Consume alcohol and eat your food and you will be able to taste any concealed potions._

_Mint_

_Mint leaves also bring out the taste of-_

The book snapped shut and Draco looked up questioningly at Snape. He hadn't used incense sticks or consumed any… but he had! He had drunk firewhisky the night before- a lot of it. _That_ was what had brought out the taste of the potion! "You realise now?" The professor said and waved his hand. The book flew back to the shelf. Draco nodded. "Any other questions?"

"Do you have any clues as to who gave me the potion?" Snape shook his head, the black strands of his hair flicking left to right.

"What have you seen during your 'spying'?" The professor asked.

"Luna… well I haven't seen her all day apart from at lunch and break. She didn't look at me once- which I found suspicious. And Pansy was normal- she tried to flirt a couple of times but she always does that."

Snape rubbed his jaw, looking thoughtful. "Do you still have feelings for either Miss Parkinson or Miss Lovegood?" Draco started at the unexpected question but hastened to disagree.

"No!"

"Neither of them?" Draco shook his head vehemently. No he did not.

"You're lying." The smug look on his godfather's face was infuriating. "Unless they both dosed you together…"

"What do you mean?" Draco asked, wondering what he was talking about.

"The potion you were given is called captiosus fiduciam- it is a powerful love potion but it isn't without any side effects. One of these side effects is that the consumer will be attracted to the person who administers the potion as well as a person they already have feelings for. Unless Miss Parkinson and Miss Lovegood made the potion together, it is impossible for you to not have any sort of romantic feelings for the person who didn't make the potion." His godfather paused, allowing the information to sink in. "So," He continued slowly, "It would be a great help if you admitted which one of these two young women you are attracted to so we knew which one gave you the potion… Unless you're attracted to both." Draco snorted; his godfather rarely had a sense of humour. But he knew that it wasn't going to last long.

"I'm not attracted to Pansy; I wasn't even attracted to her when we were in a relationship." Draco said with his head down.

"So it's Luna you're attracted to." Snape said solemnly.

"No," Draco said with a groan. "She cheated on me- I'm not attracted to her."

"Just because she cheated on you- or left you or whatever happened- it doesn't mean that you can't still have feelings for her." A shadow passed across his godfather's face and Draco wondered if he was speaking from personal experience. He knew better than to pry. "Your stubbornness isn't going to help anyone- especially not yourself."

Draco sighed, "At least we know it's Pansy who made the potion."

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed!**


	32. Chapter 32

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 32

Draco jumped out of bed- ignoring the stack of letters at his bedside. They were from his parents. He knew he couldn't hold off opening them forever but he had enough on his plate to be dealing with, without his parents expectations. He was surprised at the little revelation that was made yesterday and had felt oddly… guilty for suspecting Luna. Either way, she shouldn't have done anything to make him distrust her in the first place. It was her own fault.

Draco walked into dinner after a long day of trying to keep away from Pansy. He hadn't realised how persistent she was about pursuing him- it wasn't normal. He was glad to sit down and have friends on either side- she wouldn't be able to touch him or force conversation. "What's up?" Blaise asked.

"What do you mean?" Draco asked as he pulled a plate towards himself and began filling it with chips and a few sausages.

"You look knackered," Theo said, and gesturing to his eyes he said, "You've got eye bags and everything."

"I'm fine. I've just been working a bit too much. I'll be catching up on my rest now anyway; I think I've got everything sorted." Theo and Blaise nodded, turning to their own plates of food. Truth was, Draco was far from done with his troubles. The holidays were coming up so he was going to have to answer his parents letters soon. He had the issue with Pansy, which despite being solved, wasn't completely over with- and there was getting Luna out of his head. He shouldn't be attracted to her after everything- but the conversation in Snape's office proved that he still had feelings for the cheat, no matter how much he tried to deny it. Draco picked at his chips, his appetite disappearing after realising how much he had to do. How many of those issues he could control, Draco didn't know. But he was going to have to. They weren't going to be running rampant anymore.

After dinner Draco went straight up to his room. The first problem he'd be taking care of was his parents letters. He looked at the little stack that had accumulated over the past week and took a deep breath. He shouldn't be this nervous. The letters were stacked, newest to oldest so Draco reached out and pulled the letter at the bottom out.

_Dear Draco,_

_We have yet to hear back from you about our last letter concerning marriage. Your mother is worried that we've put too much pressure on you but that's absolute nonsense. Just reply soon to placate her._

_Regarding the last letter we sent you, I've compiled a list of good pureblood girls that are around the same age as you. When you come home from the holidays we'll look over it together and decide on a girl you would like to marry. Of course, blood-traitors like the Weasleys weren't considered and neither were eccentrics like the Lovegoods. As I understand from previous letters, your feelings towards Miss Parkinson are less than amicable so I have cancelled her out as well. However do not completely discount the girl- she is from a good family._

_Sincerely,_

_Your Father._

Draco snorted at the letter. He could almost imagine his mother editing the letter so it was less snippy and pressurising. He should've checked the letters earlier- his mother would be very worried by now. But it was too late for any regrets on his part.

The second letter was very much the same though he could detect the impatient tone in his father's 'voice' a lot more clearly. The third letter ignored the issues of the past two and instead spoke of an event taking place at Malfoy Manor over the holidays.

An ' _event for the elite of pure-blood families. You are expected to attend.'_ A tedious event, there was nothing new about that, but the way his father left no room for argument was. It must be important. He sighed and opened the next letter which detailed what he'd be expected to wear and ' _Reply soon so we know you're not planning on going to a friend's house.'_

Draco dug a quill out of his bedside drawer and starting penning a quick reply:

_Father,_

_Tell mother not to fret- I have simply been busy with schoolwork and the Yule Ball preparations this past week. Now that the Yule Ball is over I have some more time to concentrate on my studies. I do hope that we can speak about the issues outlined in your letters during the holidays but for now I have three rolls of parchment due in for potion and two rolls of parchment for transfiguration and charms. I look forward to the event taking place at the manor over the holidays and will be attending, do not worry about that._

_Draco._

He almost cringed at how stoic he sounded but he really couldn't be bothered going into detail about each issue his father had mentioned in his letters and what had been happening at school with Pansy- Luna was never going to be mentioned, his father had no idea he had been in a relationship with her. At the thought of Luna his mind wandered back to what he had found out about the potion. He was still attracted to Luna- he admitted that to himself- but he couldn't trust her. Not after she had cheated on him. The potion had made him act like a lovesick fool- he knew he had feelings there for her, but they weren't that intense. It was quite… frustrating to think that him and Luna could have had a good relationship. She spoiled it herself though- he wasn't about to grovel at her feet. He sighed and folded up the letter, opening his drawer once again- pulling out an envelope this time.

He was just sealing the envelope when his friends walked in, their gazes flickering inquisitively towards his letter- only for a moment though. "Finally replying to those letters then," Blaise said with a snort as he sat himself down on his bed. Draco looked up, confused- "They were on your desk, everybody could see them. You usually reply to your letters straight away." He said, seeming to understand Draco's thoughts. Theo sat down on his bed with a groan.

"Letters," He said with a pained expression. "I've been hearing from my mum and dad non-stop."

"What about?" Blaise asked inquisitively.

"Some event happening at yours," He said, nodding to Draco, "And… getting _married_." Draco tried not to laugh at his friend's face. "I haven't even gotten my OWLS yet!"

"Tell me about it," Draco said with a snort. He had been thinking about hiding the contents of the letters from his friends but Theo had been open enough. He should be too. "My dad wants us to 'go over options' through the holidays."

"I'm off to that event too," Blaise said with a smile at Draco and Theo's open disgust, "but I don't know if I'm going or just my mum and dad. I might be able to get you both out of it- if you want?"

"Please."

"Obviously." Theo and Draco said at the same time.

"Okaaay then." Blaise said, and none of them could contain their laughter.

After they had all sobered up, Theo spoke. "Draco?"

"Yeah?"

"I was just wondering… I was just wondering why you took the day off the other day. You weren't ill." Theo seemed hesitant; he probably thought he was asking about something private. Not surprising since Draco lied about where he was.

"I might as well tell you guys since it's being cleared up." Draco said, sitting up a bit straighter. "I'd been given a love potion- it was a really powerful one."

"Do you know who gave you it?" Blaise asked.

"Yeah- Pansy."

Theo snorted, "We should have known- the way she follows you around and dotes on you."

Draco laughed, "Yeah, I thought it might be her or Luna. But it turns out it was her- I need to ask Snape about what to do. He said to stay away from her."

"I'm not surprised." Blaise said with a smirk, "The amount of times she's flown off the handle because of you- I'd recommend you stay away too."

"Why did you think it was Luna though?" Theo asked with a frown.

"Well she's my ex. And I'd been feeling considerably 'nicer' to her and Pansy recently so I just guessed." Draco said with a shrug.

"Are you getting along with her better then?" Blaise asked and Draco looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"Well she didn't give you a love potion so I guessed that you were getting along since you were feeling 'nicer'."

"No, Snape was telling me that the potion increased feelings you alre-" Draco stopped himself just on time, feeling his cheeks heat up. Well, he thought he had stopped just on time.

"You mean you still had feelings for Luna and the potion made you feel more… intensely?" Blaise asked, and then continued, "I didn't know you still liked Luna."

"I don't." He responded with a frown. "She cheated on me remember?"

"Doesn't seem to make a difference to you." Blaise said with a grin.

"Honestly, if you still like her then go for it." Theo added in.

"I don't want to."

"But you still ha-" But Blaise was cut off before he could finish.

"Yeah I know but they aren't that strong. And they're counteracted by the fact she cheated on me."

"Well you don't know that she did…" Blaise said, quieter and more hesitant than before. What was up with his friends?! As if they thought he'd get back with Luna!

"Don't you remember the photo- Yordan, Durmstrang? Ring a bell?"

Theo snorted, "No need to be a patronising twat, we remember. But he said that she pushed him away- and that he was drunk."

"How do you know?" Draco asked, suspiciously.

"We," Blaise started, "Unlike you, decided to look into this a bit more because we didn't think that Luna would cheat on you. And pretty much everything pointed to the fact that she didn't know the kiss was going to happen- it was a surprise. But she pushed him away." He looked at his friends incredulously.

"Do you want me to get back with her or something?" Blaise shrugged but Theo spoke up.

"Yeah, you were happier with her- no offence but with Pansy all you do is snog and not speak to us."

"Well I'm not with Pansy anymore." Draco grumbled, knowing that his relationships with Pansy had been unhealthy.

"Yeah we know," Blaise said, scrambling into his covers. "But that doesn't take away the fact that you and Luna had a good… thing. Anyway, I'm knackered, goodnight."

"Same here, goodnight." Theo said.

"Goodnight," Draco mumbled, getting into the silk covers of his own four poster.

* * *

**I wanted a chapter where they all got talking and had a laugh. Some bonding after the events of year was necessary :) I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	33. Chapter 33

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 33

Severus stalked out of the castle and made his way to the edges of the grounds so he could apparate. Lucius had requested his company for his advice on who else he should invite to his death-eater meeting in the holidays. He had sent most of the invitations out but was deliberating over a few- Severus knew that this was going to be a recruitment session. He had to keep the numbers as small as possible. Quite a few students from his house had been invited to go along with their parents. None had been informed as to the true nature of the meetings- they had no idea as to what they were getting into. Their parents had been forbidden from communicating the true reasons for the meeting by letter; it was too easy for them to be intercepted. Instead the children had been told that it was a meeting for pure-bloods- it was up to their parents whether or not they'd tell their kids during the holidays. Dumbledore had been informed about the nature of the meeting but had yet to tell him what to do to reduce the number of recruits. With the Triwizard Tournament going on, Dumbledore didn't need any extra controversy. If he wasn't given instructions soon then he'd have to try and figure something out himself. He wasn't going to let his godson become a death-eater.

A short time later, Severus was stood in the living room at the Malfoy's house. It looked the opposite of lived in.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" Lucius asked, ever the good host.

"No, we're here to work; I'd rather not have the distraction." Severus said curtly. He was annoyed at his friend. He didn't know how he could let his son walk blindly into such danger. He knew that his hands were tied- the event was being hosted at his home. His child would have to be in attendance. But it didn't make Severus any less disappointed in Lucius.

"Then let's get on with this," Lucius said, sounding slightly surprised at the rejection of his hospitality. "There's the list, there are only a few people on there. I'm unsure as to whether I should invite them or not. I wouldn't want a low attendance but there is the risk of the ministry finding out." Severus nodded, understanding where Lucius was coming from- either way he was planning on rejecting every one of the names on the list anyway. He wasn't going to let more people than absolutely possible be branded or brainwashed by the ideas of the death-eaters. He pulled the list towards himself and read off the seven names on there- Igor Karkaroff was known to have snitched on a lot of death-eaters after he had been caught. There would be a lot of ill feeling towards him and he would be easy to reject. He wasn't going to bring anyone new to recruit and his students would notice his absence. He crossed the name off of the list and Lucius nodded beside him in agreement. The next two names had been relatively new death-eaters towards the end of the war- their loyalties could easily have changed. He crossed their names off quickly and moved on to the next ones.

"Are you going to tell Draco?" Severus enquired after he had finished crossing the final name off the list.

Lucius shook his head and spoke, his voice hard, "No, he wouldn't attend otherwise. Responsibility has never sat well with him." Severus pursed his lips, why on earth _would_ a young man want to join a group of murderous pure-blood fanatics? Possibly Draco, considering he'd been raised to believe such things as blood-purity were important. "He can't even handle the idea of getting married- he stopped replying for a week after I first brought it up to him."

"Of course he's not going to want to get married. He hasn't even gotten his OWLs yet." Severus shook his head, unable to believe the pressures Lucius was willing to put on his child all at once.

"He needs to consider it at the very least," He said, sniffing the air. "After all the drama with the Parkinson's last year, I'm eager to improve relations with them." Severus was horrified. He was trying to get Draco to marry Pansy?

"You want Draco to get married to Pansy Parkinson?" He asked and Lucius nodded. "Don't." The blonde looked at him, shocked at his bluntness.

"Why not? I understand the two of them have had their differences but-"

"Did you know that Miss Parkinson gave Draco a love potion? A very powerful at that. It has only been a couple of days since I brewed the antidote actually." He said, effectively cutting Lucius off. His friend stood there, looking quite shocked. As he should be.

"Why was I not informed of this?" He finally asked.

"I'm sure Draco would not have wanted to worry you since you have such an important event to organise. And this has been my only time off in a long time."

Lucius looked deep in thought, and then Severus saw his eyes lit up with malice, "I'll teach the Parkinson's a lesson." He said.

"I already have a handle on the situation. Miss Parkinson is going to be isolated from her friends and from writing to her family for two weeks after the holidays. She will attend all of her lessons but eat her lunch in Minerva McGonagall's office and will sleep in a separate dormitory to her friends." Lucius nodded and Severus could see that although he wasn't entirely satisfied with the punishment, he would take it. "So Miss Parkinson shouldn't be a contender for marriage as Draco is only just recovering from her schemes." Lucius nodded, his jaw tight- Severus felt slightly bad for him. Miss Parkinson had been the girl that Lucius had wanted for his son from the very moment Draco started Hogwarts. He wondered why Draco hadn't liked her when they were together. And why he still liked Miss Lovegood- he knew that Lucius didn't know about their relationship. Perhaps it was simply teenage rebellion, a way for Draco to break free of what was expected of him. He couldn't blame him, being raised with such rigid traditionalists was going to result in some rebellion.

* * *

**So the 'pure-blood meeting' is actually a death eater meeting...**


	34. Chapter 34

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 34

Luna skipped down the stone-paved road, her father close behind. Their search for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack had led them to quite a few places- this time it was France. Her father had managed to get a meeting with the person in charge of Beauxbatons for the moment, as everyone else was on their Christmas holidays. She had been able to see the castle from a distance away, marvelling at the way it blended in yet stood out from the face of the mountains it was carved out of. It was beautiful. France was a wonderful place to visit; she had seen creatures of all kinds, her father explaining what each one was and what it did. She couldn't wait to see if they could get more information that could help them with finding the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Or just exploring the castle would be brilliant.

* * *

Draco sat in his room, dressed and ready for the event that was taking place in only a few minutes. His mother had been busy preparing all day and, unusually enough, so had his father. The meeting seemed like it would be like a dinner party, a long black table had been set up in the place their regular dining table usually stood. He didn't think it was possible for a table to be so bleak. Surprisingly enough, his father hadn't spoken to him about marriage- probably because he was rushing around like a madman trying to perfect the house. Draco had hoped that Blaise would be able to get him out of the meeting but he hadn't heard anything from him so far. He guessed that he was going to have to attend, as well as Theo. Hopefully they could make it more fun for each other but he doubted it. You didn't speak out of turn at these dinner parties. Perhaps it would be more fun than usual? Probably not. _Why_ hadn't Blaise gotten them out of it? Perhaps he was stood in his own bedroom, looking in his own mirror, scowling at how pompous he looked. At the expectations and complications in his life- it was a burden they all shared, him, Theo and Blaise. He wished he could be free of them.

"Draco!" And just like that he was broken out of his thoughts. He made his way downstairs to see why his father was calling him.

Draco halted on the last step, seeing who was here to meet him. Blaise. He _was_ going to get out of the meeting! Draco composed himself and schooled his face into a mask of mild surprise. "Blaise, what a surprise." He said with a warm smile. A warm smile that his friend didn't return. "Is there something wrong?" Draco asked.

Blaise looked up at him and Draco caught the spark of mischief dancing in his eyes as he said, "Unfortunately there is. My aunt is ill and is in hospital." Draco tried not to laugh- he knew his friend was lying but his acting was brilliant, with his bowed head and soulful voice.

"Oh no, which aunt? I hope she isn't too ill." Draco said, successfully keeping the grin trying to appear on his face at bay.

Blaise cleared his throat and sniffed, "The one you visited with me last summer." His voice was quiet and cracked slightly at the end. "She's gravely ill, the healers are unsure as to whether she'll…" He let the end of his sentence trail off, shaking his head in a gesture of distress. He heard his mother coo sympathetically and Blaise was wrapped up in a warm embrace by her. He tried not to snort at the realisation of how uncomfortable Blaise must be. Small sacrifices had to be made to get out of tedious events like these. Narcissa released him from her embrace and looked at him with concerned eyes.

"Shouldn't you be at the hospital, rather than here?" She asked gently.

Blaise nodded and spoke, "I wanted to ask Draco to visit her too- I know they got along well in the summer and we were planning to visit again this summer."

"Of course he can!" She exclaimed. His father made to interject but she cut him off with a glare. "Why don't the two of you go upstairs to get changed- you won't want to go to the hospital in such formal attire- and I'll get a house-elf to make you dinner to take with you. St. Mungo's do terrible food." Draco nodded gravely and made his way upstairs, trying not to run in his eagerness to get out of the house.

He had just changed and was about to go into the kitchen when he heard his father hiss, "The dark lord will not be pleased about this Cissy. This is a recruitment session and you've just let three of the boys with the biggest potential leave." Dark lord? What on earth was his father talking about? He stepped closer to the kitchen door and pressed his ear to the crack, Blaise doing the same.

"Lucius, you know exactly how I feel about all of this. My son is not going to become a death eater. And Theodore is Blaise and Draco's friend too- of course he's going with them." His mother sounded angry, something he didn't hear often.

"You mean to tell me you let them go on purpose?" His father's voice was a whisper but Draco could still hear the exasperation in it.

"I didn't plan his aunt's illness if that's what you're suggesting." She said. Draco could almost imagine her smirk.

They were now sat in Theo's house- the one in the countryside- and relaying what they had heard. "So they were going to give us the mark if we stayed?" Theo asked, looking as shocked as Draco felt.

"I think so," Blaise said uncomfortably.

"Why didn't they tell us?" Draco asked, a thought of his own more than anything else. But Theo answered.

"Probably thought we'd shit ourselves and run away." He said with a snort. And Draco smiled for the first time since hearing about the truth of the meeting.

Blaise grinned but his voice was sombre when he said, "Do you think everyone is going to get branded? Everyone who's going to the meeting today I mean." Draco nodded, his mood back to a solemn one.

"Weren't Crabbe and Goyle going?" Theo asked and Draco heard Blaise suck in a sharp breath.

"When we get back to school they'll be death eaters." Blaise said. He sounded uneasy.

"I wonder if they'll have another session for recruiting people. I don't get the point though. The Dark Lord is dead."

"I know… But there was that attack at the world cup too." Each boy sat in silence, thinking about what all of the information meant.

Draco finally broke the silence. "If they have another recruitment session then we'll have to get the mark won't we? We can't get out by luck every time."

"I guess it's nothing too bad. It's not as if the Dark Lord is still around." Blaise said, but Draco could sense the unease in his voice.

"Nothing too bad _if_ you discount the fact that it's a giant snake tattoo on the most noticeable part of your arm." Theo said with a snort.

" _And_ we all have connections to death eaters." Draco said with a frown.

"I wish we didn't have to deal with all this." Theo said with a sigh.

"Well, for now we don't." Blaise said, thinking positively. "We go back to school and ignore it. We don't have the mark and we don't know if there'll be any more sessions." Draco nodded his agreement and so did Theo, their worry forgotten as they dug into the food his mum had provided.


	35. Chapter 35

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 35

They were back at school after the holidays and they had been pushed right back into the hectic lessons and homework tasks. There wasn't a gradual easing back into things. Draco was glad. The shock of the rigorous education system, coupled with the preparations for the second Triwizard task made him forget all about the stone cold silence of his home. Of not being able to walk around his home knowing death eaters had been made there days before. He didn't know why the realisation bothered him so much. He had always known his father was a death eater and it had never affected him. It was just the stark reality that he had been kept in the dark about the truth of the meeting that gave him a bad feeling. Even though death eaters couldn't do much, they were still recruiting. Why? As Theo had pointed out, the dark lord was gone… Or was he? His feeling of disquiet increased as he remembered his father's words. "The dark lord will not be pleased." He had spoken in present tense. And the dark lord could only be one wizard.

After finishing his final lesson of the day, charms, Draco was about to leave when professor Flitwick called his name. "Yes?" He asked, wondering just _why_ the professor had to call him just as he thought he could retire to his common room.

"I just thought to inform you that your tutoring sessions with Miss Lovegood will continue this term. And as much as I dislike telling students who to partner up with, I think it would be best for you to partner up with Miss Lovegood in lessons too. I'm sure that you don't mind though. Last term you made a lot of progress when you partnered up." The professor said with a smile. Why did all these teachers presume he was perfectly fine with working with Luna? Last term was _last term._ "Is that alright Mr Malfoy?" The professor looked concerned now. Draco wasn't about to be needlessly pitied by a teacher. He could only imagine the rushed apologies and the embarrassment. Felt on both sides. He'd rather not deal with that.

"Yes that's perfectly fine." He said, forcing a smile. Even though, according to the coerced confession drawn by his godfather, he still liked Luna, he didn't want to be in her company. She was too dreamy… it was annoying. _Keep telling yourself that_ \- and her indifference to being in his company was disconcerting. He was her _ex_! The way she acted would make him doubt they had ever been in a relationship, if it wasn't for the fact that he remembered the feelings he had for her as clearly as if he still felt them. _You know you still do._

He ate his dinner and went straight to the Charms lesson, wanting to get the session over and done with so he could go straight to bed afterwards. Luna appeared ten minutes later and pulled out a huge sheet, comprised of different patches of fabric, from the cupboard. She was about to hang it up, on what looked like a washing line hanging from the ceiling, when she suddenly looked at him and dropped the sheet. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"What?" He asked, dumbly. He had been caught off guard by the question.

"What's wrong?" She repeated, moving to where he was sitting.

"Nothing." He muttered, frowning as she sat down beside him.

"It's something." She said sternly. He was surprised by her stubbornness. Usually she was complacent with the answers he gave her. "I can see the Blubbering Humdingers all around you." Her eyebrow was raised and he couldn't help but smile at her concern. He wasn't about to tell her that he was worrying about being tricked into becoming a death eater, she didn't need to be involved. He knew that danger was lurking in dark street alleys and even his own home. If she knew about a death eater meeting then she'd be in danger. Of course she would. _Why do you care?_

* * *

Luna frowned as she watched Draco take his position to perform the severing charm on the sheet she had hung from the makeshift washing line in the Charms classroom. She was sure she had heard the tell-tale buzzing of the Blubbering Humdinger and seen the flash of wings. Perhaps that was what the buzzing she had felt against her head was when she had come into the classroom for the first tutoring session. He was either lying or worried- she knew he was. Perhaps Blaise or Theo knew what was worrying him.

* * *

"What on earth was I supposed to do? I got as many as I could away from there-"

"Yet many were still branded." Albus cut off Severus smoothly and began pacing. "How many?"

"Seven." Albus sucked in a breath and stopped pacing.

"Who?"

"Mr Crabbe, Mr Goyle-"

"Draco?" Severus was cut off again and Albus could tell he was losing his patience.

"No."

"They will try and recruit him soon then." Albus picked up his pacing from where he left off and spoke, "He has talent. With his family being an influential one, combined with his brewing capabilities, it is only a matter of time before he is recruited."

"Is there no way to prevent it?" Severus wore a mask of cool control but Albus knew he was worried for his godson.

"Luna Lovegood." Severus snorted but Albus was not deterred.

"What is she going to do? Scream every time she sees an imaginary creature?"

"She will convince Draco to join the side of the light. I have noticed her growing friendship with Harry-"

"And you think that will keep him safe? He's still living in a house that is playing host to the most death eaters it has since the end of the first war."

"Trust me." Severus' jaw tightened and he spun, leaving the office and Albus to his own thoughts.


	36. Chapter 36

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**We've caught up to where the story is on FFN so updates will probably be slower from now on; nevertheless I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Chapter 36

Draco stood in the stands with Theo and Blaise, and the rest of the students, beside the Black Lake. The water was glassy and still and the excited hum of students on the way down to the lake was now a solemn silence. Everyone was anticipating the announcement of the next task. What would it be? Who would win? No one knew. The first task had been brilliant to watch but he had been with Pansy—and she hadn't been very interested in the task at all. Well, she took advantage of the situation by pretending to be scared and gripping his arm… This round however, he was watching it with his friends—and he planned on enjoying every second of it.

A bitter, icy wind was beginning to pick up, and Draco was grateful for Theo's advice to wrap up warm. "What do you think the next challenge is going to be?" Blaise asked, his voice muffled by the scarf that was wrapped around his neck and mouth.

"No idea," said Draco.

"Well I'm going to hazard a guess and say it has something to do with water." Theo said with a chuckle.

Professor Dumbledore's voice cut them off and they listened keenly for the announcement for the start of the round.

* * *

Luna was stood next to Ginny, watching the still water. It was strange to think that just seconds ago, the surface was violently foaming as the participants of the Triwizard tournament jumped in. She knew that there were creatures under there—she had seen them when she had visited Draco's dormitory—and she wanted to discover them all. The lake was intriguing, it played host to so many different species. Sadly, she couldn't swim. She had paddled in rock pools and small ponds but the ocean was off limits for her. Sure, she could consume plants or cast charms to help her swim but she didn't think it would ever be able to compare to the feeling of exploring by herself—using her arms and legs to push herself further and further into unknown territories. She wished that she was capable of doing that. "I think we might be here for a while." Ginny said, looking at the water with concern in her eyes. Luna thought she knew why Ginny looked so worried.

"Harry will be fine." she said with a smile. Ginny nodded but her frown deepened.

"Where's Cho?" she asked, "I would've thought she'd be here for Cedric." Luna nodded, but internally she knew that if Cho was here, it wouldn't have been for Cedric. She could just tell that Cho didn't love Cedric. Well, she did love Cedric just not in tha-

""CEDRIC DIGGORY AND VIKTOR KRUM." A voice from across the lake announced. Luna and Ginny turned around to look at the surface of the lake. She could see Cedric and Viktor… but who were the other people with them? Luna narrowed her eyes and focused on the person Cedric was carrying. Her eyes widened and she gasped as she realised who it was.

"Cho!"

"What?" Ginny looked as confused as she felt. What was Cho doing in the lake? Luna pointed at Cedric and Cho, and Ginny squinted before her mouth dropped open. "It _is._ "

Cedric neared the crowd of people at an agonisingly slow pace; when he was finally within grabbing distance, Ginny lunged forward and hauled Cho onto the wooden surface, causing the crowd of people to jostle and stir. Luna crouched down to see if Cho was alright when a large mass of fur lurched towards her, knocking her into the water as they fell in as well.

"Lu-" Ginny's shriek was cut off as the water surrounded her, filling her ears. Her arms and legs flailed, looking for anything to grab onto, anything to help her back to the surface. _Stay calm and still. Calm and still._ She recognised the voice in her head as her father's.

It was from a day when she was younger and he was trying to teach her how to swim. After she had sunk under the water more than a few times he had given her the advice to stay calm and still so she could float whenever she felt that happening.

At the memory, Luna immediately relaxed and hoped she would float to the surface—nothing happened. She felt the heaviness of her robes and quickly shrugged them off, pulling her jumper off at the same time. The water was freezing, and the lack of layers allowed the ice-cold to pierce through her skin—but she was floating.

* * *

Draco watched as Viktor Krum was helped up out of the water along with Hermione Granger. Cedric Diggory wasn't far behind with what looked like Cho Chang. He noticed the pinched expression on Blaise's face and put a hand on his shoulder to reassure him—at least he hoped he was reassuring him.

As Cedric Diggory and Cho Chang had been pulled in, Blaise, Theo and himself had gone to take a closer look. He knew that Blaise would be worried so he allowed himself to be pulled from his dry spot, to one closer to the lake. It was then that they heard the splash.

The three of them pushed their way through the crowd and shouts started up. "A Durmstrang student has fallen in the water!"

"Yordan and Luna fell in the water!" Draco's heart leapt to his throat. _Luna_ had fallen in? He heard Theo shout at a few people when they didn't move out of the way fast enough but it didn't register. All he could think of was getting to the edge of the lake and pulling her in.

When they reached the lake all Draco could see was Yordan. _Where was Luna?_ He almost cried out in relief when a blonde head broke through the surface of the water. Yordan was swimming closer to her, under great strain from the heavy fur cloak he was wearing, when she sank under the water again. _No._ He was pulling off his robes when she came back to the top again. This time, Yordan managed to hold her up. Then they both sunk, the weight of Yordan's cloak dragging them under. Draco had seen enough. "Draco what are you do-" Theo's exclamation was cut off by the splash of Draco hitting the water. The cold was a shock and he sank under momentarily before kicking his feet and getting back to the surface. He looked around and saw that Yordan had made it back to the top, his cloak absent. Where was Luna? He ducked back under and swam down, trying to look for her—there she was! She seemed to be unconscious, her hair swirling in the water and her limbs relaxed. Draco pushed himself closer and closer to her, reaching out until he managed to grab her skirt. He wrapped one arm around her waist and put all of his effort into swimming back upwards to the surface. He finally broke the surface and gulped in as much air as he could. Luna was limp in his arms and he turned her so she was facing him, giving her a gentle tap on the cheek.

"Luna?" he asked from between his pants. She didn't respond. _Fuck._ He _had_ to get back to the shore. Quickly.


	37. Chapter 37

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 37

Draco woke up, blinking at the harsh light streaming through the window. After a few moments his eyes adjusted and he opened them to look around properly. He was in the hospital wing… but he didn't know how he had gotten there.

To his left, there was a bed with an occupant. He could tell from the dirty blonde hair that it was Luna. What had happened after he had jumped into the lake?

Draco moved to sit up but the suddenness of his actions caused his head to spin. He took a deep breath to steady himself. "Madame Pomfrey?" he called out. His voice was scratchy from disuse, telling him that he had been in the hospital wing for some time.

At his summons, the matron came bustling around the corner with two vials in her hands. Draco hoped that one of them was for the splitting headache he was experiencing.

"Take these," she said, thrusting them both at him. As he lifted the first vial to his lips, he saw her move over to where Luna was laying. Apparently, what she saw disappointed her for she returned with a frown. "That one is for pain relief and this one is nausea," she said, pointing to the appropriate ones.

Draco nodded and gulped them both down, gladly noticing that the pain and nausea was already beginning to leave. He wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve and looked up to see Madame Pomfrey looking at him with an expression of surprise.

"Is something wrong?" asked Draco, confused at her sudden change in demeanour.

"Not at all," she answered. "I was just going to give you a handkerchief to wipe your mouth with."

Draco realised that she was shocked at his actions; a pureblood always used a handkerchief. Using sleeves was something one would expect off of a Weasley.

Then he felt slightly guilty; Ginny was a Weasley and she wasn't all that bad.

"I'll leave you to rest, Mr Malfoy," said Madame Pomfrey. "Your friends waned to visit earlier in the day but you weren't awake. I will let them know that they're free to come down now that you are."

Draco smiled. "Thank you, Madame Pomfrey."

The second time he woke up, it was in the middle of the night. He yawned and looked for the source of what had woken him to find that Luna was shifting in her bed. He hadn't seen her move during the entire time he had been in the hospital wing.

"Luna?" he whispered.

He didn't get an answer. There was more shuffling and then a wince. Draco grimaced; clearly Luna was going through the same thing he had.

Swinging his feet over the edge of the hospital bed, Draco grabbed his wand from the stand next to it and padded over to a cupboard. Madame Pomfrey kept some of the less potent medicines she used inside it. With a muttered _Alohomora_ he had it open and pulled out two bottles of the potions Madame Pomfrey had given him and an extra vial.

Once he reached Luna's bed, he put the bottles on the stand next to her bed and poured a small amount of each potion into the caps. When he turned to look at Luna, he wasn't surprised to see that her eyes were open. That headache would definitely wake someone up.

Draco helped Luna to sit up, trying not to move her too quickly to avoid her feeling any more nauseous than she already did. One of her hands was clutching his shirt as he used his to help her drink the potions.

Only when her grip relaxed did he know that they had worked.

She smiled at him and whispered a hoarse, "Thank you."

Draco nodded in acknowledgment and said, "Don't worry about it." He lifted up the extra vial he had brought with him. "Take this; you need your rest," he said, handing her the sleeping draught.

She took it without question and Draco couldn't help but feel terrible that she trusted him. With what happened in the holidays still plaguing him, Draco knew that he could have had the dark mark on his forearm and she still would have taken that potion, trusting that he was a good person.

_You were happier with her._

_You and Luna had a good… thing._

Blaise and Theo's words from before the holidays echoed in his mind as Luna's head sunk into his lap. She was fast asleep.

* * *

**I'd love to hear what you thought of the chapter :)**


	38. Chapter 38

** AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!  **

Chapter 38

Draco woke up in the morning, not as affected by the light as he had been before. He moved to sit up when he heard a voice.

"Draco's awake! Theo, come back!" It was Blaise!

Draco pushed himself up just in time to see Theo hurrying towards an impatiently gesturing Blaise. He couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

The two boys made their way over to him with matching grins.

"You woke up just in time," said Blaise. "We were about to leave you."

"Madame Pomfrey told us you woke up yesterday so we came to see you," added Theo.

Draco smiled. "How long have I been in here?"

Theo looked like he was thinking for a moment. "This is your fourth day, so you were unconscious for two days."

"Two days?" exclaimed Draco. "What happened? I can't remember."

"Well you got Luna in the lake after she fell in—"

"I remember that," said Draco, interrupting Theo.

"And then you got pulled under the lake by something; Dumbledore hasn't told us what it was yet," he continued.

"After that, Professor Snape used a spell that got you out. I don't know what he did but it was so impressive! He literally made the water part; you should have seen the look on everyone's faces," said Blaise with a small chuckle.

Draco made a mental note to thank his godfather. He wouldn't feel comfortable with anything sentimental but if the potions master ever needed help, Draco would be sure to volunteer himself for the task.

"What have you been up to since you woke up?" asked Blaise.

"Nothing much to be honest," said Draco. He didn't know whether he wanted to tell the two boys about what had happened the night before. Was it really that significant anyway?

"How about Luna?" asked Theo. "Has she woken up yet?"

Draco took that as a sign. "She woke up last night and I got her some potions for her headache because I had an awful one when I woke up. I gave her a sleeping draught as well so she could sleep. If I'm not wrong she should be awake in about fifteen minutes," he said, remembering the amount he had given her.

Theo looked at Blaise for a moment. "Would you mind if Theo went to call Cho and Ginny?" asked Blaise. "They've been worrying since they didn't know she woke up."

"I wouldn't mind. They should be here just in time to see her wake up if Theo gets a move on," he said with a small laugh.

Theo grinned and left the hospital wing with a wave. The moment he passed out of sight, Blaise turned to him. "Theo wanted me to keep the conversation light but I really had to ask if you'd thought anymore about Luna," he said.

Draco sighed and shrugged. "With everything that's been happening it's just… I don't know. We all know that I still like her because of that stupid fucking potion Pansy slipped me and you and Theo seem to be convinced that she didn't cheat."

"Then why don't you give it a chance?" asked Blaise. "What could go wrong?"

"What could go wrong? I seem to recall me calling her a whore and if that wasn't bad enough I'm probably going to be a Death Eater by the end of this year." He groaned, putting his head in his hands. "It'd only be right to keep her away from me."

"Draco," said Blaise, and Draco looked up to find his friend grinning. "You're going to be a Death Eater at the end of this year; you can keep her away from you then. Have fun whilst you can."

Draco snorted. "You're an absolute—"

"Genius? I know."

"I was thinking more along the lines of twat, wanker, d—"

"Alright, alright. I get your point," said Blaise with his arms raised in mock surrender. "But seriously, go for it."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of going for it, what is it with you and Cho Chang?" he asked.

"Nothing," he said, but Draco wasn't blind, he could see that his friend was blushing.

"Oh, of course it was nothing," said Draco sarcastically. "I didn't see the pair of you kissing each other like your lives depended on it a few months ago at all!"

Blaise rolled his eyes. "It was nothing."

Was he really not going to budge from 'It was nothing.'? "Listen, I know she's with Diggory, the Hufflepuff, but don't think that it's game over. In fact—"

"Are you trying to encourage me to encourage someone to cheat?" asked Blaise, incredulously.

"Oh get off your moral high horse—I wasn't even suggesting that anyway."

"Suggesting what?" said a voice from beside him.

Blaise was the first one to speak. "Luna, you're awake!"

Draco turned to look at her and saw that she was smiling at Blaise. "I am," she said. "I don't have a headache anymore."

Turning to Draco she said, "Thank you for the potions last night; they helped a lot."

Draco smiled tentatively, knowing that Blaise was watching him. "I'm glad that you're feeling better now. I knew what the headache felt like and Madame Pomfrey didn't seem to be aroun—"

He was cut off by a jab to his side from Blaise. "You're babbling," he murmured before Draco could ask why he'd prodded him.

Before anyone could say anything else, Theo entered with Cho and Ginny.

"Luna!" Cho and Ginny exclaimed at the same time. They ran forward to meet their friend, the blonde stretching her arms out to give them hugs.

"How are you?" asked Cho, directing the question to her friend and Draco.

"I'm fine," said Luna with a smile.

When Cho glanced questioningly at him he said, "I'm well."

"That's good," said Ginny. "We thought the two of you would never wake up! Unconscious for two entire days—thanks for making us worry by the way."

Draco and Luna laughed. "Sorry," said the blonde, sheepishly.

Draco couldn't help himself. "You were worried about me?" he asked, holding his hands over his heart.

Ginny laughed. "Don't get too far ahead of yourself; we're not best friends." Turning serious she said, "But I was worried about you both."

"Well, they both seem to be fine now," said Blaise with a smile.

* * *

After Madame Pomfrey had finally managed to kick Cho, Ginny, Blaise and Theo out of the hospital wing, they walked up to the great hall together.

"I don't want to ruin the good atmosphere," began Ginny.

"But you are," teased Theo.

Ginny snorted. "I just wanted to know why Draco and Luna were acting normal around each other."

"Maybe they're both moving on?" asked Cho.

"Whatever it is, it looks like we don't need to scheme so much," said Theo with a grin.

Blaise joined them in their jokes and laughter, feeling happier than he had in a while. Draco seemed to be listening to his advice.


	39. Chapter 39

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! It was nice to write from Luna's point of view; it feels like it's been a while since you guys last saw from her POV :)**

Chapter 39

Luna sat up in her hospital bed, stretching her arms over her head. It looked like a lovely day outside. The windows in the infirmary were open and she could hear the tweeting of some kind of bird. The winter sunlight streamed in through the tall windows and Luna wondered what the view would be like from the Astronomy Tower. Madame Pomfrey was lovely, but Luna longed to step outside.

It had been almost a week since she had last visited the Thestrals; they were probably wondering where she was.

"When do you think we'll leave?" she asked, having heard the rusting of sheets that meant Draco had woken up. She didn't move her eyes away from the window, following the movements of a sparrow hopping along the windowsill, outside.

The rustling stopped for a moment. "Hopefully today, but knowing Madame Pomfrey she'll keep us in here for longer," came the answer.

She turned to look at the blond to see him hastily patting his head. "What are you doing?" she asked, slightly amused.

He paused what he was doing to look at her. "My hair. It's messy."

Luna laughed. "You're in the hospital wing," she said. "Nobody is going to see you."

Draco frowned. "We might get visitors, and if that's the case, I don't want to look like a fool in front of them." He paused for a moment. "You're going to see me as well."

"I think you forgot that I've seen you with messy hair already," she said with a chuckle and Draco's cheeks turned red. Why was he blushing? There was only one way to find out. "Why are you blushing?" she asked.

His cheeks seemed to turn an even darker shade of red at her question. "It's embarrassing, that's why. I'm a well brought up, pureblood. I should know how to look like a civilised wizard."

Luna turned her head to the side, thinking. She was surprised to see Draco's focus was entirely on her when she straightened it. "Being well-dressed isn't really important," she said. "Don't you want to relax sometimes?"

Draco was silent for a moment, and she thought she might not get an answer to her question when he spoke. "I don't really have time to relax," he said slowly.

"What about when you're with your friends?" asked Luna with a frown.

"With Theo and Blaise I can," he answered. "But anybody else... not really. Other than that time we fell asleep in Potions last year, actually. So only in front of you, Theo and Blaise."

Luna was mildly surprised. "What about Ginny or Cho?" she asked. "They wouldn't mind if you relaxed in front of them, I'm sure."

Draco smiled. "I'm getting to know them," he said. "But thanks for letting me know."

"No problem," said Luna, glad that she could help someone be more comfortable.

* * *

At dinner, Cho searched the great hall for Blaise. She needed to ask him something... if not him then Theo. Looking down the line of Slytherins at their house table, Cho almost jumped when her eyes met with someone else's.

It was exactly who she was looking for. Tilting her head to the side, she watched as Blaise frowned and then stood up, looking quite confused. Theo looked like he was asking where he was going and Blaise nodded in her direction. As he left the great hall, Cho quickly stood up and followed.

Over the holidays, she had heard some disconcerting rumours regarding Death Eaters. Her family were purebloods, but they were also considered 'neutral', which meant that although they hadn't gotten invited to the pureblood meet up in the holiday, they had heard about it.

She hoped that the rumours weren't true.

"What did you want?" asked Blaise, still looking confused.

Cho jumped, quickly relaxing when she saw that it was only Blaise. "Show me your left arm," she said, hoping that she sounded no-nonsense.

"Why do you want to—oh!" he exclaimed. "You know?"

"It's true?" she asked. "You have the—"

"No, no, I don't! I didn't go to the event."

"What about Theo?"

"He was with me; he didn't go either."

"And... Draco?" she asked, desperately hoping he hadn't either.

"No, we all made our excuses and left, thinking it was going to be another boring social event," he said with a smile that lacked any real mirth.

"Who..." Cho took a deep breath and exhaled to steady herself. "Who did get... branded?" she whispered.

"Everybody that went."

Cho sucked in a breath. "So many people went... all of them?"

"A lot of people were invited but I don't know how many actually attended," said Blaise with a small frown. "I know that Crabbe and Goyle went, for certain."

"So they're...?"

"Death Eaters."

Cho only nodded. What else could she do?

"Listen," said Blaise. "If there's an event like that and you get invited, stay away from it. I mean that. Once you're at an event, even one of the regular ones, you can't excuse yourself easily."

"I will," she said. "What about you?"

He didn't answer and she gaped at him, horrified. "You don't mean to say you'd join them!"

He sighed. "I can't make an excuse every single time. There's only a certain amount of time before they outright ask me," he said.

"You can't join them," she said simply.

"I'll do my best not to," he replied.

"Your best isn't good enough, Blaise. Don't join them," said Cho, frustrated that he wasn't giving her any guarantees.

"I can't promise you that," he said patiently. "My family isn't like yours. We're not neutral; we're not a risk to ask. Our allegiance is expected."

There was silence and Cho reached out, tentatively, to put her hands on his shoulders. He looked her in the eyes as she spoke. "Then your best is good enough. Just promise me that you'll do your best, no matter what."

He rested his head against hers; it felt entirely natural. "I promise, no matter what."

* * *

Snape stepped into the drawing room in Malfoy Manor. Lucius had requested to meet him although he wasn't entirely sure why.

His immediate thoughts had turned to Draco. Perhaps the older Malfoy wished to hear news about his son... then Severus realised just how unlikely that was. If it was about Draco's health then he would have called earlier.

Of course, he cared for his son. Lucius had probably sent him a letter. It was just that his son's friends were too kind to deliver them to him in the hospital wing. They must have had some inkling as to the pressures he was under. Severus felt... glad that his godson had people he could unload his burdens on, and that would support him. It meant that he was less likely to bow under the pressures his family bestowed upon him.

"Why did you call me, Lucius?" asked Severus, spotting him on the far end of the table. He walked closer to the blond, the noise from his shoes hitting the smooth floor echoing around the room.

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought you would have guessed," he said, sounding surprised. Severus knew it was fake. "My son is in the hospital wing because of a blood traitor's daughter!"

Severus didn't flinch at Lucius' shout. "Do not raise your voice at me, Lucius. Your son did what any other decent wizard would do—"

"Don't lie to me, Severus!"

"What purpose would I have in lying?" he asked, calmly.

"You tell me, then," said Lucius, lowering his voice. "Why would my son, a pureblood, well brought up young man, go diving into lakes for a ditzy blood traitor?"

"Perhaps it is because he is well brought up and did not wish to see someone drown in front of his eyes—"

"She wouldn't have drowned. The great Dumbledore was there," Lucius scoffed.

"—and he wouldn't have known that."

The two men stood facing each other, Severus had his eyebrows raised, daring Lucius to disagree with him.

"When he comes home, I will be speaking to him about this," said Lucius. "The Dark Lord is not pleased with the turn of events that cost him three capable new Death Eaters. If he hears about this then it will be most grievous." That effectively ended the discussion.

"If this is all you called me here for, I thank you for wasting my time," said Severus, storming out of the drawing room and out of the manor.

* * *

**Ended on that delightful bit of drama! I hope you guys enjoyed :)**


	40. Chapter 40

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 40

Draco and Luna had been released from the hospital wing to find that it was a Hogsmeade weekend.

"Do you think we should ask Madame Pomfrey if it's okay to go?" asked Luna as they watched the third year and above students milling around in the great hall without uniform.

Draco looked at her incredulously. "She'd ban us from ever leaving the castle if you gave her the idea," he said. "She was already reluctant to let us leave the hospital wing in the first place."

Luna chuckled, probably remembering Draco and Madame Pomfrey heatedly debating whether or not they should be let out. In the end, Draco had won by saying,

_"_ _If I can hold a coherent argument with you, Madame Pomfrey, I am quite sure that I am capable of stepping outside this room."_

Looking at the plates of some of the students, Draco surmised that breakfast was fast ending. "We'd better get ready before we end up having to go to Hogsmeade in our school robes," he said.

Now, dressed and ready, Draco joined a surprised Blaise and Theo as they were about to set off for Hogsmeade.

"We didn't think you were going to be let out," said Theo with a chuckle. "Madame Pomfrey likes to keep you in the hospital wing for a week after you recover."

Draco grinned. "She would have if I hadn't insisted that we be let out."

Blaise laughed. "You actually managed to convince Madame Pomfrey that you should be let out?"

"I even managed to get Luna out as well," he said, laughing. He fell silent as he noticed the other two boys exchange looks. "What?"

"Aren't you guys going to go to Hogsmeade together?" asked Blaise, making Theo's expression changed to a confused one as well.

"I was thinking about it after the conversation in the hospital wing," answered Draco.

Theo groaned. "Blaise, I told you to keep the conversation light."

Draco laughed and Blaise shrugged. "It didn't impede his recovery," he said, flinching at Theo's glare, "and it's a light topic compared to what I could have brought up."

Theo had his hands on his hips and an eyebrow arched, looking very much like a mother giving her son a telling off. Draco had to suppress a laugh at how Blaise seemed to shrink under Theo's stare. "What _could_ you have brought up?" asked Theo.

"Well, I—I could have brought up whatever happened in the holidays," he retorted.

Draco couldn't help himself. "You kind of did when we were talking about why I couldn't go out with her."

Theo's eyes widened. "Zabini!"

Just then, the crowd of people began to move as they set off for Hogwarts and Blaise, thinking fast, ran, Theo hot on his heels. Draco burst out laughing as they disappeared some way ahead, thinking about how glad he was to have friends like them.

* * *

Severus stormed into Albus' office. The conversation he'd had with Lucius the night before was still fresh on his mind.

"How lovely to see you, Severus," said Albus, looking up from the parchment he was looking at. Gesturing to a small dish on his desk, he said, "Would you like a lemon drop?"

Severus fought to keep calm. How on earth could the man offer him a lemon drop like there was nothing wrong? "No, I wouldn't. Albus, last night I spoke to Lucius Malfoy."

"What did he say?" asked the headmaster, leaning forward. "Please, take a seat, Severus."

"He was angry. Draco, Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott were not branded. Zabini's aunt was severely ill so he took the other two boys to see her. They managed to not get branded through sheer luck," said Severus with a pointed glare at the man sat opposite him. The wizard had told him to trust him! He had not protected Draco. "The Dark Lord was not impressed that three boys, who had a lot of potential to be an asset to his cause, were absent. Lucius asked to meet me last night, having heard the news that his son had dived into a lake for Miss Lovegood. I, of course, denied that there was any sort of relationship between the two of them but Lucius was sceptical. I suspect that along with being angry he was fearful should the Dark Lord hear that his son, who hadn't turned up to be branded, was helping the daughter of a blood traitor."

Albus looked deep in thought for a moment. "Do you believe your godson to be in any danger?"

Severus gawked at him. "Of course he is in danger! Lucius wants to speak to him when he comes home for the next holidays, which is Easter and not far off, at all. On top of that the Dark Lord very much wishes to recruit him, given all of Lucius' crowing about how talented his child is." The answer to the question was obvious.

"I will make sure that Mr Malfoy does not return to Malfoy Manor until this issue isn't so pressing in Lucius' mind. In the meantime, I would like Miss Lovegood and Mr Malfoy to remain apart. It poses too many risks for the boy. Before, I felt their pairing would have worked but now I fear that it will only draw attention to them and put them both in danger. What we must turn our attention to now, is who will be the person to keep Mr Malfoy away from the clutches of Voldemort?" said Albus and Severus sighed.

Was it possible to keep his godson safe?

* * *

Luna smiled as she walked into Hogsmeade with Ginny and Cho. The two of them had expected her to still be in the hospital and Luna had laughed whilst telling them how she had been let out.

"Wait, so Draco started arguing with Madame Pomfrey?" asked Ginny incredulously. "If she wasn't a Healer, I bet she would have smacked him around the head."

Cho burst out laughing at the comment Ginny made. "Can you imagine? He'd be all 'My father will hear about this!'"

Ginny snorted and Luna chuckled. "Do you want to go to the Three Broomsticks?" asked Ginny.

They all agreed that a butterbeer would be nice. Although the sun was shining, it was a winter one and frost still glittered on the ground.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	41. Chapter 41

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**So sorry for neglecting to update here, but hopefully this update and the other two later on will make up for it :)**

Chapter 41

Draco ducked into the Three Broomsticks, sheltering himself from the biting cold. Theo nudged him as he entered, causing him to look around and find who his friend had seen. Pansy.

Another nudge, this time from Blaise, made him hiss, "I've seen her; I've seen her."

Deciding to conduct himself properly in such a public setting, Draco turned to the bar and requested a Butterbeer. Ignoring Pansy seemed like the best course of action. If they had to interact, Draco knew that he wouldn't be able to hold back from remarking on the love potion incident.

Well, he _could_ , but he just wanted to have an excuse to confront her about the entire thing—he hadn't had the chance before as his godfather had seen to her punishment before he had been able to say anything. Right now, he didn't want to make a scene though.

For a moment, he wondered, did his father know about what happened?

Draco hadn't brought it up at any rate; his mind had been far too occupied with thoughts of Luna, his father trying to find a girl for him to marry—in his letters to school, not in person, surprisingly—and the possibility of becoming a Death Eater. Normal worries for a teenage wizard of course.

Draco smiled at Rosmerta as she slid three Butterbeers across the counter. It was quickly wiped off of his face when he felt a hand on his shoulder. From the past few years of incessantly enduring it, he recognised it as Pansy's. Shaking it off, he turned in his seat with an expression of indifference. Thankfully, his godfather wore the expression often enough that Draco had picked it up.

"Excuse me?" he asked, struggling not to smirk when he saw Pansy's smile tighten.

"I was wondering if we could talk?" she asked.

Draco almost rolled his eyes at her sickly sweet tone. "We're talking aren't we?"

He could practically see Pansy's patience disintegrating before his eyes. "In private," she said.

"Why do you want me to talk to you in private?"

"Because I wanted to speak to you and I don't feel this is the appropriate setting for our discussion."

"Are you sure that's the reason?" asked Draco. "I thought it was because you wanted to slip me another love potion but I'm guessing that Professor Snape's punishment deterred you from repeating the same mistake twice."

Pansy's eyes flashed with anger. "How dare you—"

"No," said Draco, cutting her off. His voice was still quite hushed in the raucous pub. "How dare _you_ try and deceive me and then have the audacity to turn up here and suggest that I trust you enough to speak to you in private?"

Pansy seemed unable to form a response, and Draco took the opportunity to turn back around and take a sip of his Butterbeer, dismissing her.

After they had finished their drinks, Draco, Blaise and Theo were about to leave when Ginny Weasley sat herself in the stool next to Theo.

"Long time, no see," she said with a grin.

Theo snorted. "You saw us in the hospital wing."

Ginny's grin changed to a pout. "But I missed you all!"

"What has gotten into you, Weasley?" asked Theo, looking perplexed.

She paused for a moment, wearing a look of mock-thoughtfulness. "I think I've just learnt to appreciate you a lot more, especially after seeing how you turned Pansy away."

" _That's_ what it was," said Draco, chuckling. "It was for my own reasons, not for making you feel any sort of appreciation."

"I feel it all the same," she said with a genuine smile.

Blaise cleared his throat. "It looks like your friends are joining us," he said.

Sure enough, when they all turned around, they saw Cho and Luna making their way towards them.

"Have you come to join us?" asked Theo.

"Yes, we have," said Cho, taking the seat next to Ginny. "We wanted to see how interesting this discussion was since Ginny seemed quite… expressive."

Blaise laughed. "She was only singing our praises and telling us just how much she appreciated us."

"You were?" asked Cho, sounding surprised.

"Did you not see how they turned away Pansy?" exclaimed Ginny.

Cho nodded. "I did."

"Her face was all red," said Luna in a quiet voice from her seat.

* * *

That caused the other two girls to halt their discussion, their minds turning back to the day Luna had first said that.

_"She probably looked like a tomato!"_

_"And_ imagine _the look on her face!"_

A lot had changed since then and Ginny found herself longing for the times when things were simpler. Although Draco and Luna were sitting at the same bar, sharing laughs and drinks, she couldn't help but want them to be more. She could see that there had been progress—it was obvious. But they had not reached the end result yet.

She knew that all of them wanted it. They just had to move past the obstacles of the past and move on from what had happened. The fact that she couldn't just get some solid proof on Luna's behalf was more frustrating than ever, but it seemed that Draco was willing to put his trust in the fact that there wasn't any.

* * *

Upon returning to his dormitory after Hogsmeade, Draco found a stack of letters from his parents. Over the time he had spent in the hospital wing, he hadn't received any letters; it must have been because they were all accumulating up here and Theo and Blaise hadn't brought them down to him.

Opening the first one, Draco read:

_Dear Draco,_

_As the past holidays were rather hectic, your mother and I were unable to sit you down to help you decide on a girl for marriage after you finish school._

_Your mother seems to think that I am putting too much pressure on you but of course that is ridiculous. You have always been well aware that as you are the sole heir of your mother and I, your marriage to someone of pure lineage is imperative, as is your responsibility to produce an heir. Putting pressure on you would be requesting an heir this instant, which I am not doing._

_The next holidays will be in a short while and I hope to speak to you about this issue. There are a number of partners to choose from._

_Your father._

Draco rolled his eyes at the letter. Of course, his marriage was the most pressing issue in his father's life. He understood that his father only wanted the best for him, but it wasn't what _he_ wanted. With that thought in mind, he opened the next letter.

_Draco,_

_I have been hearing some rumours about the happenings at the most recent Triwizard Tournament task. Is it true that you jumped into the Black Lake for Miss Lovegood? When we last discussed Xenophilius Lovegood's daughter, you were quick to assure me that there was no relationship between the two of you. Were you lying?_

_I hope to discuss this matter when I next see you in person._

_Your father._

Brilliant, his father hearing about what had happened was exactly what he needed. No wonder why Blaise and Theo hadn't brought the letters down to him; they must have suspected the contents.

The upcoming holidays were looking to be quite a pain.

* * *

**Please review and let me know what you thought; I hope you enjoyed!**


	42. Chapter 42

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**Second update today!**

Chapter 42

Ginny dropped her hands to her sides, already losing patience for this exercise. How on earth was she meant to find one book amongst this many?

"Struggling?" asked a voice from above where she was kneeling. Looking up, she saw the smug face of Theodore Nott.

She shrugged her shoulders and, mindful of Madame Pince, whispered, "I can't find the Quidditch Theory book that Madame Hooch said we needed for next lesson."

Theo smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "I have it already, if you want to borrow it?"

"Don't you need it?" asked Ginny. They _all_ needed it for the next flying lesson.

Theo shook his head. "I've read it loads of times before. I'll get it for you and give it to you in charms."

"Thanks," she said with a smile, and just before he turned around to leave she added, "Oh, and Theo?"

"Yes?" he prompted, looking curious.

Feeling slightly nervous now, Ginny continued, "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"And what is that?" he asked, still amused. Ginny knew he wouldn't be amused after her question.

"Listen, I know you're very private—probably the most private out of your friends." Now, Theo was frowning just like she knew he'd be. "I just wanted to know if you knew why Draco's still holding back."

Theo sighed, clearly hesitant to answer. "I think it's obvious…"

"Oh, don't give me that!" she exclaimed.

"Sh!" Madame Pince's reprimand made the pair of them jump.

"Here is not the place to talk about this," said Theo, lowering his voice.

"Well where is?" hissed Ginny.

"Nowhere!" exclaimed Theo, getting frustrated.

"Sh!" Madame Pince. Again.

"Can we talk somewhere else?" asked Ginny.

"Fine," Theo conceded.

But the moment they left the library, Theo disappeared. Perplexed, she walked to the staircase and found him already halfway to the bottom. And the steps were changing.

Plenty of people had run away from her before… she just hadn't expected Theo to be one of them.

Well, if she had garnered anything from that conversation, it was that there was something Theo was hiding… and the copy of Quidditch Theory.

It was in her Care of Magical Creatures lesson that Ginny saw Theo again. She was leaning against a tree trunk taking notes when she was suddenly pulled behind it. She had her wand at the throat of the person who had grabbed her. It turned out to be Theo, and somehow, she felt herself relaxing in his grip.

Yet his eyes still held a hint of distrust.

She could feel them weighing her up and she fought to keep herself composed.

"You've heard the rumours," he began slowly, pulling her further back into the trees.

"I have," she said, not letting her voice betray any kind of emotion for fear that Theo would run away from her again.

"I am not a Death Eater," he said, somehow reading the fear she had worked so hard to conceal. "Neither are Blaise or Draco."

"Right," she said, feeling a sense of foreboding here under the shadows of the trees in the Forbidden Forest.

"But we might be."

Ginny frowned in confusion. What was he talking about? "What does that even mean?"

"It means that none of us are safe so it's best that you all stay away."

"If you think—"

"No," said Theo, forcefully. "If you think that hanging around us is going to help anything, or that you'll be able to stop what bigger forces are planning, then you're wrong."

"Theo," said Ginny, stressing his name. How on earth could he think they were just going to abandon them? "We're friends. I know what's going on now. I'm going to make a suggestion: don't you think that it would be better for you to live whilst you can? Or, you know, tell the Ministry?"

She tried not to give away the fact that she was on the verge of letting her emotions burst forward; the very thought of her friends being sucked into something so horrific was… horrifying.

Theo's snort broke her from her thoughts. "You know the Ministry is corrupt as much as I do. The first suggestion was more sensible, though not by much. When the time comes for us to face all the other purebloods, how will we be able to convince them that our allegiance lies with them after frolicking around with Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood and Cho Chang?"

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean?" she hissed.

Theo chuckled and his gaze softened. "It's not my own opinion; you girls are loads of fun, but that's not everyone else's view."

"How flattering," said Ginny, completely deadpan.

"Let's just get back to lesson."

* * *

Severus let his eyes wander across the students as they were brewing. They lingered on Draco; he was looking paler than usual—and thinner. As the year was progressing, the students seemed to be becoming more competent. He had organised tutoring lessons for Neville Longbottom with Hermione Granger, on the grounds that she didn't baby him during the sessions.

He had been hesitant to start up another tutoring pair; the last time had landed him with a suspicious Lucius and a heartbroken Draco.

He knew that the stark difference between Miss Lovegood and the Malfoys was probably one of the main reasons that Draco had developed feelings for her, but he had thought it would be a fleeting infatuation, after the initial shock of their relationship had passed. However, watching the soft smiles his godson sent the blonde's way, when he wasn't checking himself, let Severus know that Draco's feelings ran deeper.

It was almost pathetic. Severus knew that one couldn't help their feelings but watching his godson change from a poised, young gentleman to a lovesick puppy was irritating.

It wasn't fair on the boy.

His eyes flicked to Miss Lovegood. He was almost grateful that her fanciful nature had entertained his godson, but she was the reason for Lucius' suspicion, and part of his godson's danger now. In another time, their pairing may have had the slightest shred of possibility, but now, it was clearly a lost cause…

As the lesson ended, Severus called back Draco. He wanted to speak to the boy.

Once everyone left, Draco took a seat and said, "Yes, Uncle?"

"I wanted to speak to you about what happened in the holidays."

Draco's eyes widened and Severus found himself wanting to retract his words. It wasn't often that he felt like that.

"What about the holidays?" asked Draco, carefully.

"You know what that meeting was for, right?"

"Of course I do, Uncle," said Draco, still wary. "But if you don't mind me saying, Uncle, I don't think this is the most… suitable place to discuss this."

Draco's excuse was all the answer Severus needed. His godson was smart enough to know how to deflect attention off of a matter that made him uncomfortable.

Fighting to keep the smirk off of his face, Severus dismissed his godson. Only once he was alone in his office did he allow himself to smile. Soon enough, it turned into a determined scowl; he was going to keep his godson safe.


	43. Chapter 43

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

**This is the third and final update for today (the fic isn't finished yet XD) It's quite a long chapter compared to some of the others but I have more lined up, and they should be posted soon after I've sorted out any SPaG issues :)**

Chapter 43

Luna yawned as she pulled her breakfast towards her. Tea may have been her favourite way to start her day; she wasn't quite sure. Morning walks were lovely too.

The owls were just coming in and the rush of feathers startled her into waking up.

One of them dropped a letter before her. Quickly, she opened it and read:

_Dearest Luna,_

_How is everything going at school? I have made progress on my newest project and I hope to see you soon so you can get back to helping. Your last observation helped greatly with revolutionising the project._

_I wanted to just let you know that Mr Malfoy, the one your age that is, doesn't seem to be the right person for you. I do not think you should speak to him or interact with him. I'm sorry, my love. He just won't understand you._

Luna was confused by her father's odd tone, but she knew that she didn't want to make him unhappy.

_But whatever happens, know this: do what will make you happy._

_Father_

But the first thing that popped into her mind at the last line was: _I guess I'm stuck with him then._

After lessons finished, Luna decided to go for a walk with Ginny. They bumped into her brothers, twins, Fred and George.

"Hiya, Gin!" the pair of them exclaimed, and turning to her, they said, "Hi, Luna!"

Luna smiled back and Ginny asked, "What's up?"

The two boys shared a glance and then finally, Fred spoke, "Well, little sister, we need your help for a little trick."

Luna chuckled as Ginny's eyes lit up. "What can I help with?"

George smirked. "Well, the Beauxbatons' boys were taking way too long in the bathrooms this morning—and they woke up earlier than us—"

"So we wanted to let them know that we share in this school," finished Fred.

"That sounds like fun, but how am I meant to help with something that's in the boy's bathrooms?" asked Ginny, confused.

Fred answered. "You'll be helping refine our plan and help us decide just what equipment we need—"

"And more excitingly, you'll be getting the materials." And again, one's sentence was finished by the other. Luna found the entire interaction incredibly amusing.

"That's not possible unless they're in the school… which I'm guessing they're not," said Ginny with an arched eyebrow.

"Your guess is right!" exclaimed George.

Ginny frowned. "So how am I meant to get them?"

"We know a way, little sister," said Fred, sagely.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "And what is this way?" she asked.

"That is for us to know—"

"And you to find out."

Ginny grinned as the two boys turned and walked away. "Do you want to help?" she asked, turning to Luna.

"I wish I could but I have lots of homework to catch up on."

"Oh, come on, Luna!"

Finally, Luna conceded. "It will depend on what time I finish," she said with a smile as Ginny squealed and the two of them rushed to Ravenclaw Tower to see if they could convince Cho.

As Ginny and Luna left Ravenclaw Tower, without finding Cho, they entered the Gryffindor common room with smiles—only to be pushed right back out by Fred and George.

"What do you want?" asked Ginny, annoyed and confused.

"We wanted to talk to you," said George, and Ginny rolled her eyes.

Luna was just confused.

Only once the four of them had exited the castle and were walking on the grounds did either of the twins speak.

"What we wanted to know was: have you spoken to Harry recently?"

Ginny answered first. "No, not really. Why?"

"So you've been hanging around with Slytherins, but you've not been helping our Triwizard champion prepare for the next task?"

"We don't even know what the next task is!" exclaimed Ginny.

Luna and George chuckled. "Calm down!"

Fred smirked. "We were only joking. What we wanted to know was if you two could be trusted to know… _the ways_."

Ginny snorted at Fred's drama. "Of course, I can!"

"No!" exclaimed George. "It's not that simple. You have to prove yourself worthy."

"Oh, stop being so stupid," groaned Ginny.

Luna frowned. "What are 'the ways'?" she asked and Fred's eyes lit up triumphantly.

"That's the sort of attitude we want!" he exclaimed.

* * *

Now, the four of them were in the Forbidden Forest; Fred and Luna lingered a little way behind as Ginny and George bickered between themselves. Fred sometimes chipped in, in defence of his twin, of course.

Fred glanced at his little sister's best friend. Luna seemed lost in her own world, barefoot and smiling at leaves (and occasionally peering curiously at the leaves above her head). He couldn't help but smile. The Fourth Year had visited the Burrow plenty of times during the time Ginny had known her and she had become quite close with all of the Weasleys… Ron was still a bit wary.

Deciding to break the silence between the two of them, Fred asked, "How are things going with you?"

Luna's dreamy eyes focussed sharply on Fred's face, and with complete sincerity, she answered, "Lovely. What about you?"

Fred had heard about all of the drama surrounding the blonde's relationship last year; it was lovely to hear that she was doing well. "Well, things are looking exciting! Me and Fred haven't had the chance to organise a proper prank since October!"

Luna chuckled. "I'm glad I get to help then… but why are we in the Forbidden Forest?"

Fred leaned in conspiratorially. "I'll let you in on a secret. We're not really testing you to see if you can be trusted to know _the ways_." Luna couldn't help but grin at the dramatics. "We're bringing you in here so we have an excuse to scare Ginny."

Luna's eyes widened. "Don't scare her too much."

Fred ruffled Luna's hair with a smile. "Don't you worry; she's our little sister. We won't be too cruel."

And like that, the three of them carried on walking until they were deep in the woods, by which time Fred had insisted upon giving Luna a piggyback because "You'll hurt your foot in a root or bramble."

Later on, students would see a great flock of blackbirds flying out of their nesting spots because of Ginny's scream—and threats of 'wait till I get my hands on you!'

* * *

"Severus, please understand—"

"What do you mean? Please understand? Albus, this is my godson we are talking about! He does not wish to be a Death Eater, and I will not let him be forced into becoming one!"

"There is nothing—"

"You have let me down once already," hissed Severus in a dangerously low voice.

Dumbledore glowered and his tone hardened. "Need I remind you that it was your own foolish devotion to the Dark Lord that wa—"

"That doesn't mean my godson has to be punished for it!"

"I am not saying that he does."

"Then why aren't you helping him?"

"Severus, you must understand. I cannot compromise the safety of other students. If Mr Malfoy keeps avoiding the mark, suspicion will immediately land on Miss Lovegood. In fact, Mr Malfoy would be in even more danger if he keeps avoiding the mark; the Dark Lord would become suspicious."

"You cannot possibly be suggesting my godson should mar his skin with that horrific symbol?" Severus was appalled.

"Severus… I—"

But Severus had lost his patience. He pulled up the sleeve of his robes and levelled his gaze at Albus. His voice was pleading. "I do not want my godson bearing this blemish. I have had it long enough to know just how important it is for him to avoid it. Please, Albus."

"I will do what I can—but I am making no promises of Draco's safety."

Severus made no reply, pulling his sleeve down and exiting the headmaster's office.

* * *

Luna tried not to laugh as Ginny ranted on.

"I can't believe you knew they were going to trick me and you didn't tell me!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up into the air and letting them drop to her sides.

Seeing that Ginny was done talking for the moment, Luna decided to speak. "They said they wouldn't be too cruel."

"They're Fred and George; of course they're going to be cruel!" But even Ginny couldn't stop herself from chuckling. "I must have made myself look right stupid by screaming like that."

"You didn't," said Luna, trying to be reassuring.

"I want to get them back," said Ginny, completely serious.

Luna tilted her head to the side and thought for a moment. "I don't think you can out prank Fred and George…"

Ginny groaned, and flopped onto the grass beside Luna for which she was glad. All the pacing had been making her dizzy.

"You're right."

"It's not impossible," said Luna, smiling optimistically.

Ginny smiled at her dreamy friend. "Honestly, nothing really seems to be whenever you think about it."

Ginny crossed her legs and squinted across the grounds. The first flowers were only just appearing and the early March sunshine was stronger than the winter one had been. "Is that Draco?" she asked, pointing to a figure reading under a tree.

"There's really only one way to find out," answered Luna.

So the two girls stood up and headed towards the tree, Ginny staring the entire way.

By the time they reached the figure, they discovered that it was indeed Draco. He looked up at them expectantly through wisps of his blond hair. Luna remembered when he used to keep it slicked back with not a strand out of place and smiled. It was nice to see that he was giving himself some freedom—even if it was only a small thing.

"Can we sit here with you?" asked Ginny.

Draco nodded, looking surprised. "Of course you can; was there anything in particular that made you want to sit here?"

Luna chuckled. "Three is better company than two."

There was something in Draco's eyes that Luna couldn't quite pinpoint, but the moment she saw it, it had disappeared.

"It is indeed," he said, sounding sagely.

"What are you reading?"

"It's a book for some research I was doing on Charms," he answered.

Luna couldn't help but smile. After making progress in their tutoring sessions all that time ago, Draco seemed to have taken a great interest in the subject.

Ginny nodded as she yawned, leaning on Luna as the sun set behind the three of them, and Draco begun to read aloud as the first stars began to shine in the night sky.

When his voice began to get weary, Luna suggested they go back to the castle for an evening meal. But the Slytherin and Ravenclaw soon discovered that Ginny Weasley was fast asleep. A day of rigorous Quidditch practice, secrets being revealed and being pranked, whilst offering to help with a prank had taken their toll on the redhead, and she didn't stir as her two companions stood above her, chuckling.

* * *

Minerva McGonagall glared at the two students in front of her. Honestly, she found the entire situation amusing, but she couldn't let them know that.

Taking in the sleeping Ginny Weasley, who was being levitated by Luna Lovegood and Draco Malfoy, (who looked like they were stifling laughter themselves), Minerva didn't know if she had the patience to ask what had happened.

"Detention. Both of you," she said, her voice clipped and efficient.

Miss Lovegood remained complacent; however, Mr Malfoy sputtered with indignation.

"No ifs or buts, Mr Malfoy," she said, absolutely no-nonsense. "The two of you are wandering around the castle after curfew. If you have more to say then I can set another detention and you can speak to me whilst I dock house points for the two of you."

"Where will our detention be set?" asked Luna, completely unaffected.

"You will be serving your detention with Hagrid, Miss Lovegood. He needs help with something or the other. Now, don't dilly-dally; get back to your common rooms. I will ensure Miss Weasley gets to bed safe and sound."

As the two students walked away, she heard a grumbled, "It's not my fault she's as hard to wake up as you."

The statement was punctuated by Miss Lovegood's laughter and Minerva shook her head, wondering what she was going to do if the students kept up these dramatics.


	44. Chapter 44

**AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply borrowing it for a fic. Enjoy!**

Chapter 44

The next day dawned bright and clear; Luna attended each of her lessons, performing the new charm in Charms perfectly on the second try, gaining near full marks on her potion in Potions, watching her crystal ball attentively in Divination, and completing half of her essay in Defence Against the Dark Arts.

It was during her evening meal that Hagrid came to pick her up for her detention.

"Mr Malfoy is already at the hut," he said, as they made their way across the grounds to Hagrid's home.

She saw Draco as they neared; he was trying to fend off Fang's enthusiastic licking, but to no avail. By the time Hagrid had gotten the excitable dog to sit, Draco's hand had already been licked.

Luna had to hide her smile behind her sleeve.

Hagrid cleared his throat. "Righ', a couple o' house-elves already brought down some of yer clothes from yer dormitories. I don't want you getting your nice school robes dirty."

"What are we doing?" asked Draco, still looking at his hand in disgust. Luna noticed the way his small nose scrunched up.

"We're doing some mushroom-picking and looking fer any fox trails. The chickens 'ave been disappearing lately. Yeh'll get a chance to clean yer hands, Mr Malfoy," said Hagrid, sounding amused.

Once they were all changed, (and had clean hands), the three of them made their way over to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Draco looked uneasy.

The last time he'd been in the Forbidden Forest on a detention was First Year… and that hadn't gone well.

But this time, the Dark Lord was gone… well actually…

"The two of yeh will be paired up. I hope I can trust yeh'll get the work done alone," said Hagrid, sternly, handing them a basket each, and sending them off.

Draco followed Luna's lead. She seemed to know what mushrooms she was picking; he stuck to the ones he could identify from his Herbology lessons and those in his Potions book.

The first couple of minutes passed in silence before Luna spoke.

"It's not often that I get to come to the forest at night," she remarked, bending to pluck two mushrooms from the grass.

Draco's eyebrows shot up. "You've been allowed in the forest at night before?"

He was shocked; Dumbledore always emphasised how dangerous the Forbidden Forest was…

Luna turned to him with a smirk, her light yellow sundress swirling around her legs. Her feet were bare and Draco worried she might step on something that would hurt her.

"I wasn't exactly allowed…"

Draco's eyes widened, but he quickly got over his surprise and chuckled. "I wouldn't have taken you for a rule breaker."

Luna laughed, shaking her head. The light of the moon streamed through her dirty blonde hair. "I wasn't here to cause any trouble; it was just nice to sit here and think."

Draco frowned. "This place looks far too dreary to sit and think in."

All around him was darkness, the moon occasionally lighting up a patch of grass.

Luna shook her head again with a smile. "I don't sit _here,_ " she said.

"Then where do you sit?" he asked, perplexed.

"Shall I show you?"

Draco nodded slowly at her invitation; it would be nice to see where she sat and _thought_ , although Draco doubted it would look much different from where they were now.

Luna smiled. "It's not far away."

She slipped her fingers into his free hand and gently pulled him along through the trees. She seemed to know exactly where she was going, which was reassuring.

Then, finally, they entered a large clearing, and Draco's breath was stolen away.

The moon lit up the clearing, causing some fungus on the trees to light up in varying colours, and fireflies floated around lazily, adding further colour to the wonderful mix.

But Luna was soon tugging at his hand again, and when he turned to look at her, he found his breath taken away all over again. The moon had allowed its light to fall on her, giving her an ethereal glow. The hem of her dress swished slightly in the breeze and Draco could see the drops of water from the grass on her feet and ankles. When he managed to change his expression from one of awe to one of questioning, she said, "This isn't where I sit."

"Then where do you sit?" he asked.

Her smile widened, and letting go of his hand, she jumped up to catch a low-hanging branch with her hands. Draco's momentary feeling of loss was replaced by shock as Luna deftly climbed up the tree. Of course, he had no choice but to follow.

By the time he reached the top, he found Luna perched on a branch staring upwards. Ever so slowly, he seated himself next to her and followed her gaze—and found his breath stolen away for the third time.

The Scottish night sky was beautiful… striking—awe-inspiring. Draco couldn't think of a word good enough to describe it. Beautiful constellations hovered far above their heads in dizzying swirls of silvery-white. He didn't speak, only wrapped his arm around Luna and held her close, trying to say thank you for such a beautiful view.

Earlier today, he never would have thought that he would be sat in a tree in the Forbidden Forest during the middle of the night. But here he was, and it was all because of Luna.

_You were happier with her._

He couldn't help but think that his friend's words were right.

As the silence and beauty of the night combined with Luna's warm body next to his, allowed Draco to think clearly for the first time in a long time, Draco realised that Luna brought out characteristics from within him that even he hadn't known he possessed. And he wanted to know more about himself, and her…

Perhaps he'd listen to Blaise's advice, and live happily whilst he could.


End file.
